I Am Not Me
by Maresia Eterna
Summary: [COMPLETE]“This village is going through a very difficult time.” Tsunade confessed, and Shizune tensed. “Is it Akatsuki? A war?” she asked, and the Hokage narrowed her eyes. “No, it’s the hormones!“ [NarutoHinata ShikamaruOC SasukeSakura KakashiOC]
1. Blame The Hormones

**Disclaimer:** Everything here belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I only own my own characters and the plot of this fic. Nothing else is mine.

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A quick information about this fic:

**Rating:** T

**Genres:** Romance, Drama, Humour  
**Warnings:** Language  
**Pairings:** Naruto/Hinata; Shikamaru/OC; Sasuke/Sakura/Lee; Kakashi/OC

**Romantic Hints:** Neji/Tenten; Ino/Chouji  
**Summary:** "This village is going through a very difficult time." Tsunade confessed, and Shizune tensed. "Is it Akatsuki? A war?" she asked, and the Hokage narrowed her eyes. "Now, it's the hormones!"

**_IMPORTANT INFORMATION_ concerning the fic:** Okay people, I have to tell you that I am _not_ a Sasuke/Sakura fan. Therefore, this is important; I seriously need you to tell me with whom you want Sakura with; if Sasuke or Lee. Please, if I don't have enough feedback to know what my readers want…well, I guess the result is easy to predict. Anyway, I hope you guys don't mind.

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**ATTENTION:** English is my second language, so please forgive me the mistakes. I'll do my best to correct them, but please, be kind about those. Thank you.

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**I Am Not Me**

**Chapter 1**

Blame The Hormones

The day was perfect.

There was not one single cloud in the sky. There was a very faint breeze caressing the rich green leafs on trees, and birds were crossing the blue ocean above while breaking the silence with their beautiful melodies.

People were wandering through the streets, taking care of their own business, while children could be seen running around, having fun. Some people could be seen talking at the doors of their shops, chatting about their lives or plans for the present and future.

However, there was something missing in that so-called perfect summer afternoon.

Something that the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, had not failed to notice as she stood by the windows of her office, in the main building of the Hidden Village of Leafs, Konohagakure. Behind her were piles and piles of documents and fillers, some already scattered in the floor, but she ignored them all as the woman continued staring outside, her long blonde hair falling down her back in two pigtails.

"Tsunade-sama!" a voice called-out, but the woman just ignored the other person as she crossed her arms, and stared at the streets of Konoha that were visible from her position. "Tsunade-sama, you should be working!"

"Shizune." Tsunade spoke in a strong voice as she looked over her shoulder, at a younger woman with short black hair and matching eyes. "Come here, and tell me what you see."

For a moment the other woman just stood on the same spot, holding a pink pig in her arms, until she allowed the animal to jump to the floor. Then, she slowly walked to the Hokage's side, who motioned for her to stare outside, and still with a confused expression on her face, Shizune did what she was told.

"Hum, am I supposed to see something unusual?" Shizune questioned as she continued gazing outside, her eyes scanning the whole area, and Tsunade sighed in reply. "Hum, did something happen?"

"Shizune, it's summer time. During spring nothing happened, and I can see that people are doing the same now." the Hokage started, and her assistant stared at her in confusion. "I mean, where on earth is the love?"

"I'm sorry, Tsunade-sama, but I'm not following it." Shizune spoke after blinking in confusion, and the Hokage glanced at her by the corner of her eyes before turning to the desk, and start looking for something. "Err, do you need help?"

"No, I found it." Tsunade retorted, before resting her left hand on her hip as she rose a document with her right one, and then she cleared her throat. "This village is going through a very difficult time."

"What do you mean? Is it Akatsuki? Is there a war?" Shizune questioned, but she closed her mouth when Tsunade looked at her way with narrowed eyes. "Did something happen while I went to pick TonTon up?"

"Yes, _hormones_ happened." Tsunade retorted, and Shizune looked puzzled at the answer. Then, Tsunade turned the document around so that the other medical-nin could read what was written in it. "Look at that! We seriously need to do something about this before everyone goes nuts."

_"Uzumaki Naruto, age 18, born October 10._

_Likes Haruno Sakura, who thinks he's annoying. Keeps trying to have the young medical-nin's attention, but always makes a fool of himself._

_Haruno Sakura, age 18, born March 18_

_Loves Uchiha Sasuke, who thinks she's annoying. Keeps trying to have the boy's attention, but always makes a fool of herself._

_Uchiha Sasuke, age 18, born July 23_

_Could not care less about whoever likes him, and appears not to have any love interest at the moment._

_Hyuuga Hinata, age 18, born December 27_

_Is completely in love with Uzumaki Naruto, but never told the boy about her feeling. She prefers to stutter, blush and faint when around the boy. You can usually finding her stalking Naruto or training to become a better ninja._

_Hyuuga Neji, age 19, July 3…"_

"Tsunade-sama, what exactly is this?" Shizune asked as she stopped reading, noticing that everything was basically the same, being the small information the only thing slightly different from one another.

"This is a disgrace to the village!" Tsunade exclaimed as she put the document down. "These kids are running away from what they want. They refuse to accept what they have inside of them, and I simply cannot take this anymore!"

"But Tsunade-sama, it's not as if we can do something." Shizune started, rather incredulous by what was going on. Perhaps the Hokage had been drinking behind her back, but Shizune knew it was not the time to start searching for empty bottles of sake. "Or…did you think about something?"

"I wouldn't be the Hokage if I didn't know what to do in this situation." Tsunade started before turning her chair to her so that she could sit down, and then she crossed her legs. "The plan is extremely simple; we'll have a masquerade ball."

"Pardon?"

"Oh, don't look so shock Shizune, I have everything figured out." Tsunade spoke before smirking, and the other woman stood on the same spot, TonTon now sitting at her feet. "And a masquerade will do just fine."

"But Tsunade-sama, you know perfectly well that some of them won't go if they find out this is a ball." Shizune started only to quiet down when she noticed the mischievous glint on the Hokage's eyes. "You did think about everything, didn't you?"

"Why, yes, of course." Tsunade started, the smirk still on her face, and Shizune entitled her head to the side, expecting to hear more. "There's only one way for them not to refuse, and I'll be damned if one of them even thinks about not going."

And suddenly the perfect day became very frightening.

* * *

With a sad sigh, an eighteen-year-old girl sat down on the grass, dark-indigo streaks caressing her pale face as her long hair fell down her back. Her eyes, pale lavender with white pupils, were locked with the blue sky, while a sensation of trouble emerged from the depths of her soul. For a moment she just stood in that position, sitting on her legs, watching the sky, until a new sigh left her lips, and the girl looked down at her hands.

She had been given a new mission.

A new and _very_ peculiar mission.

To go to a masquerade.

Everyone had been with her when the mission was given. However, the most strange was that it was not only Team 8 that had received the masquerade as their mission…all the other teams had been ordered to go. And despite of everything that was not the worst part…oh no, there was something else that made the Hyuuga heiress dread about going to that masquerade.

Her accompanying person.

Yes, Hyuuga Hinata was dreading the person she had to go with to that masquerade. Not that she knew who that person was, but not knowing who was going to be her…date was terrifying her.

She knew it was a boy. She did not know who, but she was sure it was a boy. Kurenai-sensei had explained that it had been Tsunade herself who had chosen who was going with whom, so it had to be a boy and a girl. But the problem was, who on earth was her date?

Slowly Hinata put her hand inside her long pale-lilac jacket's pocket, and took from inside a small, folded paper. In silence, she opened it, and stared at the short words written inside; _third training ground. 7 o'clock pm._ According to Kurenai-sensei, whoever her date was, he was going to meet her at in that spot, at that hour, and would escort her to the place where the masquerade was going to take place.

And despite of everything that information had not comforted Hinata; on the contrary, it had only increased her anxiety. After all, they were obligated to wear masks as well as formal clothing to go to that masquerade, and were forbidden of taking the masks off until they were told to do so.

'_I wish I knew who my accompanying person is.'_ Hinata thought to herself as she folded the paper, and put it back inside the pocket. Then, she put a long streak away from her face, and sighed.

It was not a secret with whom she wanted to go with, but it was also no secret the person with whom Naruto wanted to go to the masquerade. And despite of everything…regardless of all the years that had already passed, it still pained her to think that Naruto liked Sakura, when it was clear that the medical-nin only had eyes for Sasuke.

As she thought about the three members of Team 7, Hinata could not help but recall Rock Lee. Sadly he was pretty much in the same situation as her, liking non-other than Sakura, who always said he was too unique for her liking.

"Hinata?" a voice called-out, and the girl was forced to leave her doubts and wishes to look to her side only to face another girl, as old as her. "Do you want some company? You look rather troubled."

"Hai, I would appreciate a little bit of company." Hinata answered in her quiet tone of voice, and the other girl smiled, a speck of happiness emerging in the depths of her brown eyes, so dark that they resembled to hazel-nuts. "What brings you here?"

"Well, I'm still on my lunch break, so I thought about walking around before returning to the hospital." the other girl explained as she sat down next to Hinata, and raised her knees so she could rest them against her chest.

At those words, Hinata nodded while the other girl glanced at the sky, her curly yet wild brown hair falling down to her shoulder-blades as she continued looking up. Out of all girls in Konohagakure, Hinata had to admit she probably saw more of herself in the girl sitting next to her. Fuzen Hana was also a quiet girl, who probably had an even lower self-esteem than Hinata, and who liked to stay in the shadows and wear baggy clothes.

Both of them had grown close, probably because they knew what it meant to be introvert. The biggest different between them, however, was that Hana did not blush, stuttered or fainted when around the boy she liked, and she did try to behave as if she was at easy around everyone.

"Thinking about your so-called mission?" Hana asked suddenly, and Hinata blinked at the question before nodding. "Yeah, Sakura and Ino stormed inside the hospital, fighting over Sasuke. I think they believe Sasuke is going to be their date."

"Yeah, I guess that's expected." Hinata replied, rather quietly, and Hana chuckled. "Anou…did you…I mean, are you going to the masquerade too? I know you're a medical-nin, but since Sakura and Ino are going too…"

"Yeah, Shizune-san came to see me, and told me to take this." Hana trailed off as she took a piece of paper from inside her black jeans pocket, and then she opened. "She said I'm supposed to be at this place, at this hour, and that then I'll meet whoever I'm supposed to go to the masquerade with."

"Do you know who your…date is?" Hinata questioned, only to mentally sigh when Hana shook her head. "Kurenai-sensei said we're not supposed to find out who's coming with us until someone tells us to take the masks off."

"Well, all I know is that Sakura and Ino are already making plans to gather the girls." Hana started with a small shrug. "You are included, and so am I. I think they want to discuss what we're supposed to wear and such."

"Oh."

And for some reason, Hinata could not help but wish to be unable to go to the masquerade.

While Hana and Hinata continued talking about the so-called mission, a certain blond haired boy was walking up some stairs, his deep blue eyes locked with a small piece of paper. He seriously did not understand what he was supposed to do, but then again, it was not as if Hatake Kakashi knew how to explain things to his students.

All that Naruto had understood was that he was supposed to go on a mission. Though, the mission he was supposed to get done was not like the ones he had been accomplishing until then. No, the mission was a masquerade. Not that Naruto was certain about what that meant; he had never been at a masquerade before so he was pretty much in the dark, but there was something Naruto knew.

He was supposed to dress formally, and if there was something lacking in his wardrobe, that something would be formal clothing.

Sighing, Naruto stuffed the piece of paper inside his orange pants' pocket, not caring about folding it first. He just did not know what he was supposed to do. Kakashi had only told him that he was supposed to go to the place written on the paper, at the hour that was also mentioned there, wearing something formal and a mask. Kakashi had also informed Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke that they were forbidden of taking the mask off.

With a sigh, Naruto reached the top of the stairs and turned to his left only to sigh again. Apparently someone had beat him into going to that roof, and that person was non-other than the lazy Nara Shikamaru, who was lying on the bench, hands behind his neck as he stared at the clear sky.

Still without uttering a word, Naruto walked to his friend's side, and sat down on the bench, his arms resting on his legs. For a long moment the two males just stared at the sky, their thoughts getting mixed with the perfect blue colour of the heavens until a bird appeared from out of nowhere, and landed right in front of the two young men.

"So…you thinking about the mission?" Naruto questioned suddenly, his eyes locked with the small bird that was jumping around in the floor as it continued searching for food. Shikamaru, on the contrary, muttered something about things being too troublesome. "Yeah, I agree. I seriously don't know what Tsunade-basan is thinking."

"You and me both." Shikamaru finally spoke up, as his black eyes continued locked with the sky, but then he sat up straight only to drop his shoulders when he sighed. "This too troublesome."

"Tell me about it. How on earth do they expect me to dress formally and go meet I-don't-know-who? I mean, what if it is Sakura, and she gets pissed off because I'm her date?" Naruto questioned as he turned his head to his face. "I mean, of course I want to go with Sakura, but I know she would like to go with Sasuke, so…"

"Yeah, it sucks." Shikamaru interrupted his friend's rambling with a deep breath, and Naruto nodded. "I have the feeling I'm not going to enjoy my date either, but then again, I'm seriously thinking about not going."

"Me too!" Naruto exclaimed before blinking. "Although, hum…I would like to go, you know? I never went to a masquerade, so I don't know how I'm supposed to act, but I would still like to go, but…man, why do we have to go all cleaned and dressed up? I'm so not good at that!"

"Tsk, no need to go berserk because of it." Shikamaru muttered, his brown hair pulled into its usually very high ponytail, and Naruto shrugged. "Well, if the two of us don't go…"

"Naruto! Shikamaru!" a voice called-out, but before the two friends could even move, Kakashi appeared in front of them, holding a book with a pale green cover in front of him. "You have to go to this masquerade. It's a mission, and you cannot refuse it."

"But Kakashi-sensei, it's a masquerade!" Naruto exclaimed before scratching the back of his head. "You told us we have to dress formally, and wear masks that we can't take off until someone tells us to. I mean, what kind of mission is that?"

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but he does have a point." Shikamaru continued, as he stared at Kakashi with a strange expression on his face. "This masquerade is not even fit to be a mission, because only Rookie 9 are going. What kind of mission only involves the Konoha teams?"

"To find an answer to that question, you have to go." Kakashi retorted, before smiling, and the two young men sweatdropped at his words. "But trust me, if you go, you won't regret it. In fact, I think you're going to thank Tsunade-sama afterwards."

"Eh? What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto questioned, but Kakashi simply waved a hand in the air at same time he said 'I'm out', and then disappeared in a cloud of smoke. "Ah, typical Kakashi. Runs away after only giving half of the information…"

"Man, going to that ball sure won't mean anything good." Shikamaru mumbled as he leaned down on the bench, and stared at the sky. "Tsk, and there's not even one single cloud to look at… This sure means troublesome times are just around the corner."

"Eh? Really?" Naruto questioned as he glanced at the sky before turning to Shikamaru. "Eh, Shikamaru, why do you think Tsunade-basan suddenly came up with an idea to a masquerade?"

"I have no idea, but for some reason I think it has to do with hormones."

**To Be Continued…**


	2. Talking About Another

**Disclaimer:** Everything belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I only own my own characters and the plot of this fic. Nothing else is mine.

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I was so happy for all the feedback, that I decided to post this now. I hope you guys don't mind this quick update. Anyway, I want to thank **A-bomber**, **allicat**, **Terenin**, **shima orealu**, **LightingFox101**, **Jojibear**, **Seishun Gakuen**, **city with no people**, **xo4evargurlxo**, **Silvan Arrow**, **Brazilian Phoenix**, **zeta.the.devil** _and _**SGCred** for everything! You guys are awesome!

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**Chapter 2**

Talking About Another

"Tsunade-sama, I still don't understand how you can be so certain that everyone is going to this masquerade." Shizune started as she grabbed various fillers, and put them next to the desk, on the floor. "I mean, I can see some of the girls happy about it, but the boys? Like Shikamaru would say, I think they'll find this simply too troublesome."

"This was declared to be a mission, and as a mission they cannot refuse it." Tsunade pointed out, and Shizune sweatdropped. "Besides, I have people watching them, so if one of them even thinks about refusing this, they will be told that not going is not an option."

"But…I don't know, Neji, Sasuke, Shikamaru…they don't seem the type of guys that will dress up for the occasion." Shizune commented as she started preparing a pile of documents, but she still noticed the growing smirk on the Hokage's face. "You _did_ think about everything, didn't you?"

"Of course!" Tsunade exclaimed, sounding a bit too excited about the topic, and Shizune sighed as she dropped her head.

"I wish you had this enthusiasm when you're supposed to take care of everything else that involves the village." Shizune spoke up, and Tsunade laughed at her words before shaking her head.

"Even the Hokage needs to have some fun sometimes, Shizune." Tsunade retorted, and her assistant sighed again before looking up when a cloud of smoke appeared in the middle of the office.

"Yo!" Kakashi greeted as he raised a hand in the air. "I was just walking around Konoha, when I heard Naruto and Shikamaru talking. Those two were thinking about not going, but don't worry, I told them they had too." he quickly added when he saw a speck of anger flashing in Tsunade's eyes.

"Good, and before you go away, I have something to tell you." the Hokage spoke, and Kakashi nodded. "I have a mission for you. I have already looked for a partner for you, and everything has been prepared so that none of you refuses this."

"Is it Akatsuki?" Kakashi questioned in a darker tone, and Tsunade shook her head before standing up, her hands resting on the desk.

"You are to go to this masquerade too." Tsunade answered, and Kakashi promptly dropped the book, his visible eye widened in surprise. "We need adults watching over the kids. Who knows what they will do when they finally allow their hormones to speak freely. I can't risk anything, so you're going to keep an eye on them."

"Me? Tsunade-sama, seriously you-"

"Thought about this, and you _are_ going." Tsunade interrupted, and Kakashi sighed before crouching down, and grab his book again. "You don't need to be kept in the dark though, so I'll allow you to meet your accompanying person right now."

In a cue, the door of the office swung opened, and Kakashi looked to his side only to sweatdrop when he saw who was coming with him. Long teal coloured hair…the right eye of a deep cerulean colour while the left one was of an exquisite jade colour… black sleeveless tank top, zipped up to her neck, with a dark green tank top underneath… tight fitting black biker type shorts…

"Oh no…"

"Ah c'mon Tsunade, why_ him_ of all people?" the woman asked as she walked inside the office, a hand resting on her hip while her right arm was resting on her side. "Why the pervert of all people?"

"I'm not a pervert." Kakashi spoke with a sigh, and the woman stared at him, her long hair kissing her tanned cheeks. "What are you doing here, Mesi?"

"What I'm doing here? Tsunade sent me a message, telling me that an important mission had come up." the woman started explaining before focusing her attention on the Fifth Hokage. "You told me to drop my current mission because I would have a partner waiting for me, so that both of us could go to wherever you want to send us to. So, I dropped everything and came immediately, but now you to tell me that I left everything because of a damn old pervert?"

"If you want to put it that way, yes." replied Tsunade as she rested her right hand on her hip, and then she gazed at the two Jounin with a mischievous glint in her amber eyes. "Your mission is to make sure no one crosses the line during the masquerade. Oh, and before you ask, you need to use a mask too and dress formally."

"You gotta be joking!" Mesi exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air before stepping closer to the desk, and then she pointed at Kakashi while her eyes were locked with Tsunade's. "I refuse to go anywhere with this pervert!"

"Sorry Mesi, but just like the rookies can't say no, you're not allowed to decline this mission." the Hokage started, and once again Shizune sighed as Tsunade started laughing like a madwoman. "It's time for hormones to kick in for real in this village."

"For heavens sake, by the way you're talking, it even sounds as if this new generation has an hormonal problem." Mesi muttered under her breath, and Kakashi sweatdropped at her words. "Can't I go with Gai instead? At least he's not a pervert."

"Sorry, Gai is out of the question; he would probably end up cheering for Lee to get into a fight, and we can't allow that." Tsunade replied, and Mesi's eyebrow twitched before she turned around, and glared at Kakashi.

"It seems we're together in this mission." Kakashi commented, and the female Jounin walked towards him before poking his chest.

"If _you_ dare to cross the line, I'll show you the _real_ meaning of being unable to leave any offspring behind after your death." Mesi hissed under her breath, and Kakashi gulped as he stared at her in the eyes. "You better pick me up at 7 pm sharp, or else I'll leave you alone with a bunch of kids who don't know how to control their hormones."

With those words, Mesi stormed out of the office, leaving an uncomfortable silence behind. After a short moments, Kakashi sighed at same time he closed his eye only to gaze to his side when he heard someone chuckle.

"She hasn't changed." Tsunade commented, a mischievous smile on her face, her fingers entwined together. "At least I know that she'll keep you in your place, Kakashi. You may go now."

"Tsunade-sama," Shizune started when Kakashi disappeared in a cloud of smoke, and the Fifth Hokage turned to her, "I thought you just wanted to make sure that the students leave theirs shells during the masquerade. Why did you call Mesi to go with Kakashi, when you know that she can't stand him?"

"I guess that the kids are not the only ones having problems dealing with their hormones." Tsunade retorted, and Shizune blinked while the older woman started laughing.

* * *

As she sighed in relief, Sakura wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand, a triumphant smile on her face. A _meow_ suddenly broke the silence of that practice room, and Sakura could not help but giggle when the white cat started licking her left hand. Tsunade had asked her to start practicing in other animals, aside from fishes and butterflies since the bigger the animal was the more difficult it would be to cure it.

The white cat in front of her was wounded, and it had been Sakura's job to make sure the poor feline was cured and ready to be released. Since it was already moving around and meowing, Sakura was more than positive that it was time to let the poor animal go, and return to whoever owned it. However, when Sakura cradled the purring animal in her arms, she remembered the latest mission she had received.

Oh, she truly hoped she could go with Sasuke to the ball. Tsunade knew of Sakura's feelings for the avenger, so the young medical-nin could only hope she got lucky. Sakura seriously did not know how she would react if someone else got the opportunity to go with Sasuke to the masquerade.

Someone like Yamanaka Ino.

"Sakura!" a voice called out, and the girl turned around, still holding the cat in her arms, only to come face-to-face with a tall girl, whose blonde hair was pulled into a high ponytail, her crystalline pale-blue eyes sparkling with mischievousness. "You cannot possibly imagine what I was just told."

"Whatever it is, Ino, I'm certain it can wait." Sakura replied, honestly not feeling like fighting. In fact, she could not even look straight at Ino; the simple thought of her archenemy going with Sasuke was enough to make her blood boil.

"Aw, c'mon Sakura, I promise this is of great interest for you." Ino pointed out right when Sakura was about to walk away, to free the cat, but curiosity ended up taking over her. With a sigh, Sakura turned to Ino, and waited for her to continue. "I just heard where Sasuke-kun is supposed to meet with his date, and guess what?"

Oh no…

"You got him in your team, but I got him to go with me." Ino finished, and Sakura's eyebrow immediately started twitching. "Oh, I'm so happy! And I got to find the perfect dress for the occasion. I mean, it's not every day that a girl has the chance of going to a ball with her lover."

"Sasuke-kun is not your lover!" Sakura exclaimed suddenly, and the cat meowed in pain when she squeezed the poor animal against her chest in rage. "No one is supposed to know of the others meeting places. How do you expect me to believe that Sasuke-kun is your date?"

"Tsk, its called sources, dear." Ino pointed out with a small smirk, a hand resting on her hip, but Sakura continued to quiver in anger. "Oh, I know you would love to go with him, but I guess it's my turn now."

"I don't believe in you!" Sakura shouted, and this time the cat hissed when the girl suddenly threw her arms in the air, consequently also throwing the poor animal in the air. Fortunately, the cat managed to fall on its paws, but it did not take long for it to run away. "Sasuke-kun will never go out with someone like you, Ino-pig!"

"Oh really? Wanna make a bet?" Ino questioned suddenly, the smirk still on her face, and before she knew what she was doing, Sakura nodded. "Very well, if i take Sasuke-kun with me, you have to go to Lee, and confess your admiration and crush for him."

_"WHAT?"_ Sakura asked, a look of horror in her face. "Are you _INSANE?_ I don't have a crush on Lee! Admiration yes, crush never! The guy is way too unique for my liking."

"Then, what about making sure you go with Sasuke-kun?" Ino inquired back, and Sakura clenched both her fists in anger.

"Fine! If I'm the one who goes to the ball with Sasuke-kun, you have to tell Chouji that you love him!" Sakura snapped back, and a mix of horror and shock appeared in Ino's face. "Yes, because I know you like him!"

"I could never like Chouji!" Ino exclaimed, also closing her hands into strong fists, and both girls gritted their teeth in anger as they kept glaring at each other, almost as if they were trying to fulminate each other.

"What about both of you doing what you just said if none of you goes with Uchiha Sasuke?" a voice questioned suddenly, but Sakura and Ino kept staring at each other as they answered at same time.

"DEAL!"

"Great, now that's out of the way, what about you actually start training?" the same voice questioned, and both Ino and Sakura glared at each other, anger emanating from them like flames, and on the exact same second they turned their backs to each other, and walked away.

Tsunade, on the meantime, just continued to watch the two medical-nin walking to opposite sides of the room, the white cat in her arms. Then, a smirk appeared on her face; things were truly getting interesting!

* * *

The sun was already setting, but Rock Lee was still fighting against his team-mate, Tenten, both of them already dead tired, but still refusing to quit. Hyuuga Neji was meditating somewhere close to them, but still far enough not to be hit by weapons. If there was something Lee truly liked about his team, was that he got to fight against who he believed to be the strongest girl.

Well, the second strongest girl, because in terms of strength no one could beat Haruno Sakura.

As he dodged all the weapons Tenten was throwing at them, Lee started remembering what his sensei, Maito Gai, had told them on the previous day. Everyone had been 'invited' to go to a masquerade, and according to Gai's announcement, they were supposed to allow the power of youth to spring like flowers.

On contrary of Tenten and Neji, who received that announcement with groans and attempts to refuse the mission, Lee had thought about it. He definitely did not enjoy wearing formal clothing, and wearing masks was not his thing, but when Gai had also added the small information that they were supposed to take someone with them Lee had not been able but hope.

Hope that he could take Sakura to the masquerade.

Lee, however, was very conscious of how Sakura would react if she was to be his date. He was also aware that Sakura probably wanted to go to the ball with Sasuke, but Lee also knew it that if there was something he could do it was to have hope.

"Lee, will you snap out of it?"

Before Lee knew what was going on, he felt someone smack him on the top of his head, and he immediately yelped in surprise. As he closed his left eye in pain, his hands now rubbing the top of his head, Lee watched as Tenten appeared in front of him, her hands resting on her hips.

"What the heck are you thinking to doze off like that in the middle of a fight? When I decided to spar with you, you promised you would be focused." Tenten scolded as she continued to stare at Lee with a serious look, and the nineteen-year-old boy sighed.

"Gomen nasai, Tenten, I was just thinking about something." Lee apologized as he lowered his arms and took a deep breath. "Shall we continue?"

"Why bother? It's clear as night that your mind isn't on the battle." Tenten replied, sounding a little bit angry, and Lee dropped his head in shame. "But let me guess, you're thinking about the masquerade and how you would love to take Sakura with you."

"How can you be so certain?" Lee questioned, and Tenten sighed before walking closer to him, her right hand still on her hip since she rose her left one to rest on Lee's shoulder. However, since he was taller than her, Tenten had to look up.

"You always have this look on your face when you're thinking about Sakura." Tenten started to explain, and Lee blinked at her words. "Don't ask me to describe it, but every time I see it, I know you're thinking about her. And since Gai-sensei spoke about the masquerade yesterday, it's not too hard to know what you're thinking of."

"Well, I'm fine now. I'm really sorry fo-"

"Drop it Lee, it's fine." Tenten interrupted, lowering her hand, and then the corner of her lips curled into a small smile. "You know, I'm not good at this stuff, but you can always try to approach Sakura at the ball. I mean, even if she isn't your date, you can always go talk to her and stuff."

"Not if she goes with Sasuke." Lee muttered before shaking his head, and then he smiled at his team mate. "Are you anxious to go to the ball?"

"Nah, I'm not really into that kind of stuff." Tenten answered as she shrugged and dismissed the topic with a wave of her hand. "I'm only going because…well, this is supposed to be a mission, and Gai-sensei did say a hundred of times we couldn't refuse…"

"Especially with Neji saying he's not going." Lee added, and Tenten nodded. "Say, why don't you convince him to come? I mean, you're probably the only one who can convince him. You can tell Neji that going is the only way of keeping an eye on Hinata or something."

"You know something, that's a great idea!" Tenten exclaimed, her smile growing slightly, and Lee felt himself smile too. "And I think I'm going to tell him now; the masquerade is in two days, so there's n-"

_"TENTEN!"_

In a flash Lee was in fighting stance, but he blinked in confusion when Sakura and Ino appeared from behind a bush. Both of them were panting, and looking rather flushed, showing that they probably had been running for quite sometime. Then, both Hinata and Hana emerged from the same bush, the two of them looking more calm, but still blushing slightly.

"Tenten, what on earth are you doing?" Ino asked as she grasped Tenten's left arm, Sakura doing the same with the brunette's right one. "We have to go!"

"Huh? Where are we going?" Tenten asked confusedly, too stunned about what had happened to even try to get away from her friends' grip. "And how on earth did you find us?"

"Why do you think Hinata's here for?" Sakura asked back before starting to pull Tenten with her. "But c'mon we don't have any time to lose, we have to start to prepare things for the masquerade!"

"What? But that's in two days!" Tenten exclaimed, finally coming back to her senses, and she started to struggle. "Will you let me go?"

"No!" both Ino and Sakura exclaimed in unison, and Lee chuckled at their actions. Everyone knew that if they let go of Tenten, she would sprint away, not to be seen until the night of the masquerade. "You're coming with us!"

"Oh no! Lee, please!" Tenten begged, but the boy shook his head. "If I go with them, I won't be able to talk to Neji! C'mon Lee, give me a hand."

"You give one step forward, Rock Lee, and you'll regret it." Sakura hissed, raising her closed fist to prove her words, and Lee immediately recoiled before turning to his team-mate.

"Sorry Tenten." he muttered, and almost immediately Tenten increased her struggles, but stopped when Ino and Sakura started pulling her away. "Please, make sure she doesn't get traumatized. Tenten truly doesn't like girly things."

"Don't worry." Hana replied at same time Hinata bowed, and the two shy girls went after the others. Moments later, Hyuuga Neji emerged for behind a tree, his long brown hair reaching below his waist.

"I don't even want to know."

**To Be Continued…**


	3. Spying Eyes

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing except the plot and the unknown characters.

* * *

I want to thank **zeta.the.devil**, **city with no people**, **Terenin**, **SGCred**, **Chaos Angel1235**, **loverofallthingschocolate**, **LightingFox101**, **Jojibear**, **A-bomber**, **Hinata'sbf**, **Aliki**, **Silvan Arrow** _and_ **xo4evagurlxo** for everything guys. You rock!

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Spying Eyes

"Kage Shuriken no Jutsu!"

"See? I knew I was right!" a second voice shouted, but Uchiha Sasuke ignored it as he fell on his knee, on the ground, his deep black eyes watching the multiple large shuriken hitting various trees that had been previously marked with white paint. His black hair was caressing both his shoulders and flushed cheeks as it slowly fell down to its normal position since Sasuke had jumped to the air before throwing the weapons.

With a smirk on his face, Sasuke noticed that he had hit all the marked trees, but before he could proceed with his training, a hand tapped in on the shoulder. As a reaction, Sasuke grabbed the wrist as he turned around, but before he could twist the person's arm there was a puff, and a piece of wood appeared behind him.

"Thank heavens for replacement technique!" the same voice Sasuke had heard before exclaimed, and he looked to his other side only to see Naruto standing not too far from him, a grin on his face. "Oi, Sasuke, what the heck are you doing here? We're supposed to have a meeting now, you know? Just the guys."

"Humph, I'm not going to that pitiful mission." Sasuke growled, knowing fully well about the reason why the guys were going to that reunion, and Naruto blinked at his words. "Leave. In case you're too stupid to notice, I'm training."

"Sorry Sasuke, no can do." Naruto started right when the Uchiha survivor was about to grab some kunais from his pouch, and Sasuke growled. "Trust me, it's not as if I want you to go, but _he_ wants, and he can certainly make you."

With a blank expression on his face, Sasuke glanced at Naruto only to see him pointing to some random spot to his left. Slowly Sasuke looked to the same direction, and grunted when he spotted Kakashi sitting on a branch, reading his book. Underneath the branch were Chouji, Shikamaru, Lee and Neji. And all of them, Sasuke quickly realized, did not look happy about being there either.

"So, Kakashi-sensei, I guess we're going to have the meeting here!" Naruto exclaimed as he turned to the oldest man, who simply nodded since he was too interested in the book to look up. "Great! C'mon people, show some enthusiasm!"

"Man, this is too troublesome, yesterday you were complaining, and now you're too hyper." Shikamaru muttered under his breath as he put his hands behind his neck, and he stared at the sky. "Man, there are so many beautiful clouds today…"

"This is a pointless mission." Neji spoke, his arms pressed against his chest, his eyes closed as he continued leaning against the tree. "I'm supposed to be meditating; not losing my time with foolish things."

"Ah, think of this as a way to reveal the strength and beauty of our youth!" Lee exclaimed, and Sasuke growled under his breath while he clenched his right hand into a strong fist. What on earth had the Hokage been thinking when she had come up with that obtuse idea? And then she would even wonder why most ninja from Konohagakure were pitiful in a battle!

"C'mon Chouji, what about you?" Naruto questioned as he walked towards his friends, his usual foxy grin back to his face. "What do you think about all this? Do you want to go to the masquerade?"

"As long as there is free food, you can count on me!" Chouji exclaimed, and he suddenly took a bag of chips from out of nowhere, and everyone sweatdropped at his behaviour.

"There is no purpose in this so-called mission." Shikamaru started as he continued to gaze at the clouds, and then he sat down on the ground before leaning his back against the tree. "We'll recognize each other immediately."

"Now that you mention it, it's true!" Lee exclaimed, before looking up at Kakashi, who was still reading his book. "We're supposed to dress formally and wear a mask, but it will be predictable. I mean, the height, the hair…"

"No one ever said you were supposed not to be recognized." Kakashi finally spoke as he turned the page, and everyone looked up at him. "All you're supposed to do, like Lee mentioned, is to go all dressed up and wear a mask."

"But what's the purpose of the mask, if everyone will know who we are?" Chouji questioned as he continued to munch the potato chips, and Kakashi finally looked down at them.

"It's irrelevant." Neji finished, still without opening his eyes, and Sasuke mentally agreed with the Hyuuga ninja.

"All this is meaningless." Sasuke grunted under his breath as he appeared next to Naruto. "This is a bunch of childishness, and then you still complain that most ninja don't know how to fight."

"Actually, you're the ones to blame about all this." Kakashi started, as he focused his attention back to his book, and everyone – including Neji and Sasuke – stared at him as if he was insane. "If you didn't behave the way you do, there would be no need to do this masquerade."

"How can this be our fault?" Naruto questioned, as he blinked in confusion. "We do everything Tsunade-basan asks us to. If there's something wrong in all this, it's her idea to do the masquerade."

"Man, this sucks…" Shikamaru muttered as his eyes slipped back to the sky and clouds. "And where on earth are Shino and Kiba? If this is a mission that includes the four teams, they're supposed to be here."

"Shino and Kiba can't go with you." Kakashi started, without looking at the group below him, and everyone yelled a _what?_ in surprise. "Kiba had to go with his sister to a special training with Akamaru, and Shino had to leave with his father. Something about going to observe some bugs, and being this an opportunity that only shows up once in a lifetime."

"Tsk, do you know how unfair that just sounded?" Shikamaru questioned, but Kakashi simply glanced at him before continuing to read this book. "This is such a drag…"

"What are we supposed to do now?" Chouji questioned suddenly, but when no one answered, everyone looked up at Kakashi. Surprisingly, the older Jounin had already put his book aside, and in a couple of seconds appeared in front of the group. Then, Kakashi sighed.

"We go shopping."

_"WHAT?"_

* * *

She seriously did not know what had possessed her to go to that place.

Oh wait, nothing had possessed her, Ino and Sakura had been kind enough to drag her away from the hospital that she simply had had no choice to refuse.

Ah, the beauty of having two obsessed fashion girls as friends.

"I think she should wear purple."

"No way, that pink top would look gorgeous on her!"

But it seemed that none of them wanted to know what she thought about their fashion sense. After all, all Sakura and Ino did was chose the clothes they liked and the colours they loved the most, which were pink and purple respectively.

"Girls, you're making everyone stare at us." Tenten spoke up, and Hana looked around only to blush when she noticed that her group was indeed in the spotlight. Everyone who was around them were watching Sakura and Ino fight over what clothes they were supposed to wear.

"Why don't we chose what we like?" Hinata asked in her low and soft tone of voice, but the words had come up so small that Hana had trouble to notice that she had even spoke. "It's safer."

"Yeah, I agree." Hana said as she looked at the Hyuuga heiress next to her, and Hinata looked at her only to smile slightly. "C'mon, lets leave Sakura and Ino, and lets look for clothes that we actually like."

"Hey, wait, don't leave me alone with these two!" Tenten shouted when she saw the two shy girls trying to get away without being noticed, but unfortunately the brunette's burst also caught Ino and Sakura's attention.

"Oh no, you don't, we're looking for the clothes _together!_" both medical-nin shouted, grabbing her friends' shoulders, and the other three girls groaned in reply. "C'mon, this is going to be fun!"

"Oh, tons and tons of fun." Tenten muttered under her breath, as she allowed Ino to drag her to the dresses section. Hana and Hinata were also being dragged by Sakura, who had grabbed their wrists with her iron grip.

"Ok, lets start looking!" Ino exclaimed eagerly as she clapped her hands together, but before someone could even move an inch, she twirled around, and pointed a finger at her friends. "Tenten, you are forbidden to look for something tomboyish, and Hana and Hinata you are way forbidden to look for something that covers you guys up!"

"But…" the three girls started, but Ino raised her hand in the air while Sakura nodded in agreement from beside her.

"If you even dare to _glance_ at something that is not an elegant dress, Sakura and I will take serious measures, you hear me?" Ino questioned, and the three other girls looked at each other before sighing and nod. "Great! Start looking!"

With a sigh, Hana started looking at the dresses displayed for everyone to see, but on contrary of Ino and Sakura who immediately started grabbing various dresses, she did not even raise her hand. Beside her, Hinata was timidly gazing at the dresses, and Tenten was glaring at the formal clothing as she roughly pushed the dresses to the side.

She had never liked dresses; they made her feel utterly exposed and Hana always felt worse when wearing them. What could she say? She did not like her body; being Chouji's cousin she had inherited the tendency to gain fat, and she was overweight. Not as much as Chouji, but enough to make her feel uncomfortable when wearing clothes that showed more skin that Hana was used to show.

And then there was also the fact that the guy she liked would never look at her.

Slowly Hana glanced at Hinata, and smiled slightly when she saw her best friend grasping a dark purple dress. Even though she was too shy for her own good, Hinata had more pretenders that she acknowledged. But then again, Hinata only had eyes for Naruto, who was too dense for his own good.

Then, Hana dared to glance at Tenten. She was definitely the tomboy of the group, always ready to kick someone's ass, and yet she knew how to look beautiful even without trying. For some reason Hana could say that Tenten was not even aware of how pretty she was, but the medical-nin was positive that a certain Hyuuga had noticed.

And then there were Ino and Sakura. Now those two, even though they behaved like enemies from most of the time, were the most beautiful girls of the whole group. They were the ones who knew everything about how to look good and take profit of it, but sadly their obsession over Uchiha Sasuke stopped them from notice who always tried to have their attention.

"Oh Tenten, this dress would look so gorgeous on you!" Ino exclaimed when she noticed the dress that the tomboy had grabbed, and Hana snapped from her thoughts in time to see a very faint blush covering Tenten's cheeks.

"Aw Hinata, that won't work, it will cover you completely! This one, however…"

Hana looked at Hinata in time to see Sakura handing her a dark coloured dress. Hinata, while grabbing the dress, blushed ten shades of red, and stuttered something Hana was unable to catch.

"What about you?"

Jumping slightly in surprise, Hana rested a hand against her chest, and looked behind her only to see Ino and Tenten watching her. For a moment Hana wondered if she should try to explain her point of view, but when she was about to open her mouth, Ino threw a dress at her.

"I want to see you with that!" Ino spoke before motioning for Sakura and Hinata to get closer. "Now c'mon, lets try them out!"

"Oh wait, look!" Sakura exclaimed, pointing at some random spot, and the girls looked to where she was pointing only to gasp. "They came shopping?"

Well that was indeed something that one did not see everyday. After all, who would have thought that Kakashi would actually be able to drag the boys to a mall, and make them buy clothes?

"Let me guess, you want to spy on them." Tenten commented as she pressed her arms against her chest, carefully not the damage the dress she was holding, and Ino and Sakura glanced at each other before nodding. "Oh boy, c'mon! Can't you just wait for tomorrow? You're going to see them all dressed up then."

"C'mon Tenten, don't behave as if you don't want to see what Neji is going to wear." Ino pointed out with a knowing smile, and the tomboy rolled her eyes before yelping when Ino pulled her by the arm. "Lets go spy!"

"You're crazy!"

Despite of all attempts to get free, Tenten ended up being dragged by Ino towards the Men Section, Sakura pulling Hana and Hinata with them. There were girls in that section of the shop too, so they would not call too much attention to themselves. Well, at least while Sakura and Ino kept their mouths shut or spoke in hushed tones.

"Oh no! Naruto is going to grab that disgusting tangerine orange shirt!" Ino gasped.

"And Lee is choosing a lime shirt!" Sakura gasped moments later, before pressing a hand against her chest. "They have no fashion sense. They want us to go blind! Girls, remember to take your sunglasses just in case."

"Hum…Sasuke is choosing a white shirt…" Hinata commented suddenly as she blushed slightly, and Hana smiled at her. Apparently Hinata had glanced at Sasuke, but was now more interested in staring at Naruto.

"What? White?" both Sakura and Ino asked at same time before staring at Sasuke. "Aw, I hope it rains."

"You guys are too weird. I don't want to be seen with you anymore." Tenten muttered under her breath as she shook her head, but it was then that her eyes caught something. "I should have known Neji was going to chose a cream shirt."

At that Hana chuckled; it seemed as if in spite of what was said, all the girls were interested in spying the guys. As for her, she dared to glance at her cousin, and she smiled slightly when she saw Chouji raising a sea green coloured shirt; he had always liked green.

"If we knew who's going to be our accompanying person, we could buy matching dresses." Ino commented suddenly, and Tenten sent her an horror look while Hinata blinked and Hana shook her head. "Sakura, what do you think?"

"Well, I wouldn't mind wearing white, but if it rains it would become see-through so…" Sakura shook her head, and she straightened up, "C'mon, lets try our dresses. We still have to buy the masks and the makeup."

At that Hana, Hinata and Tenten groaned, but allowed their two friends to pull them away from the Men Section. As soon as they disappeared into the Women Section, however, Shikamaru looked up from the shirt he was holding and looked around.

For some reason he felt as if someone had been watching them.

* * *

"Tsunade-sama, are you sure this is what you want to do?" Shizune questioned as she watched the Hokage preparing something in the laboratory. "I mean, they're just children, what if something happens?"

"Please, they're not children." Tsunade started as she continued to prepare the medicine. "They behave like children though. All I'm going to do is help their feelings to come to surface, and then we'll finally be able to feel the love!"

"I continue to think it's all in your head." Shizune muttered before looking down when a _oink_ was heard, and she smiled when TonTon looked up at her. "At least you agree with me. Do you think she has been drinking behind our back?"

"Shizune, stop talking about me as if I'm some sort of alcoholic, and come help me out!" Tsunade exclaimed suddenly as she mixed the medicine with water, which quickly turned a deep shade of pink. "We only have tonight to have this done, and then Kakashi will come get this. Everything has to go perfectly."

"Hai!" Shizune exclaimed as she saluted, but as she approached the Fifth Hokage, Shizune could not help but wonder if a sort of virus was in the air. After all, people were definitely starting to go crazy over this masquerade…

**To Be Continued…**


	4. Twists of a Twisted Mind

**Disclaimer:** Everything here belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I only own my own characters and the plot of this fic. Nothing else is mine.

* * *

I want to thank **A-bomber**, **xo4evagurlxo**, **city with no people**, **Silvan Arrow**, **LightningFox101**, **Ruki44**, **Jojibear**, **Terenin** _and_ **erik** for everything. You guys rule!

* * *

**Chapter 4**

Twists of a Twisted Mind

With a deep breath Kakashi knocked at the door, his eyes locked with the book he was reading. He wanted nothing more than to be in his house, lying on the bed, reading that book all-over again, but since that was a mission Kakashi knew he had to go. Not only that, but he was positive that Tsunade was crazy enough to hide in the shadows, and make sure that he was there, ready to go to the place where the masquerade was going to take place.

So, since he had not found anything that could help him escape from such mission, Kakashi had forced himself to leave his house and go meet Mesi. He just hoped that Mesi would not get mad at him for being her accompanying person…again.

Suddenly the door was opened, but Kakashi simply raised a hand, his eye still focused in what he was reading. What could he say? No matter how many times he read that book, he just wanted to read more and more.

"What on earth are you doing with your Jounin outfit?" Mesi questioned suddenly, and Kakashi sighed before closing the book. Even though he had taken the boys out to buy their clothes, he had refused to buy some for him; he simply did not enjoy those type of clothes; they made him feel uncomfortable.

"Well, I couldn't possibly fight while wearing a tie, could I?" Kakashi asked back, but when he finally glanced at Mesi, his eye widened in shock and surprise.

Kakashi had known Kourui Mesi ever since they were children, but since his sensei had been the Fourth Hokage himself, they had never been too close. In fact, now that Kakashi thought about it, the Mesi standing in front of him was not the same Mesi from his childhood.

First thing Kakashi had noticed was that every time she was around him, when they were kids, she would always blush even if it was just a bit. However, since during that time Rin had always been around him, trying to show how much she loved him, Kakashi had never paid Mesi much attention. Not only that, but with Obito around saying that Kakashi was his best friend and also his biggest rival, Kakashi truly had never had enough time to understand what Mesi truly felt towards him.

One thing Kakashi had indeed noticed was that Mesi, aside from blushing, always stood in the shadows. He remembered when his team and hers got together for a mission, Mesi was the one who always stood behind, accepting all orders without refusing.

And now she was a complete different Mesi. She was a loudmouth, who refused to let people to boss her around, even though she still put others above herself. And some thing else that had changed on her was her style of clothing. And Kakashi, although now thirty, found it impossible not to gawk at her clothing.

Mesi was wearing a sea green coloured dress that hugged her curves just the right away…curves offered by the hard training of a Jounin. The dress had two straps that obviously tied up behind her neck, her low neck offering little freedom for thoughts to run wild. The skirt fell down to her feet, but the two slits on both sides that went up to her thighs were what were truly killing Kakashi. Not that he had not seen Mesi wearing shorts, but she still looked beautiful, especially with her hair falling down her back in curls.

Suddenly Kakashi felt an enormous pain on the top of his head, and he winced before rubbing the place Mesi had just smacked him.

"Don't you even dare to gawp at me, you pervert!" Mesi exclaimed, anger visible on her face, and Kakashi sighed. "And if you must know, I'm wearing shorts underneath, so get your mind out of the gutter."

"You should take this as a compliment." Kakashi pointed out when he saw Mesi turn to her side to grab something that was beside the door, inside the house, but he gulped when she glared at him.

"Any praise coming from you is a praise coming from a pervert, so I prefer not to know what you think of my outfit." Mesi retorted, and Kakashi dropped his head as he sighed. "And your mask is _so_ original."

The sarcasm in her voice was clear as crystal, but Kakashi still did not stop himself in time not to touch his usual mask that covered half of his face. Tsunade had said they were supposed to wear a mask, but she never said what type of mask so Kakashi had figured his usual one would work nicely.

"C'mon you pervert, lets go to the school." Mesi spoke up, but Kakashi blinked when he noticed she had just grabbed her keys. There was no mask in her hand or already in her face.

"You're not wearing a mask?" Kakashi questioned as he watched Mesi turn around to lock the door, and his eye glanced down at the woman's tanned legs before looking at the back of her head.

"Hey, you aren't wearing anything formal, so I think I can break the rules as well." Mesi answered as she turned around, but Kakashi winced when she elbowed him on the stomach hard. "And don't stare at my legs either."

"If you didn't want me to stare, why did you chose that outfit?" Kakashi asked, but he blinked when Mesi smirked at him, and motioned for him to start walking.

"C'mon, pervert, it's time to tame the hormones."

* * *

With a sigh, Tenten stared down at her dress, and growled. If there was something that she truly hated about being a woman were dresses. When she was little, Tenten used to damage all the dresses she disliked the most with her weapons; she never ended up ruining all the dresses because her mother always seemed to know when to show up and take the weapons from her hands.

The main reasons why Tenten did not rip the dress she was wearing at the moment were; number one) she was positive that someone was watching her, making sure she was going to the masquerade, and number two) she actually liked to see herself in that damn dress.

Go figure.

With another sigh, Tenten continued to observe her dress, and slowly she run her hand down the fabric. Despite of all problems she had been through because of Sakura and Ino, the two obsessive girls had ended up choosing a good dress. The colour was lovely in Tenten's eyes, though she had refused to admit it out-loud; it was of a dark sangria colour that seemed darker due to her tone of skin.

And the dress itself was pretty simple; it had a 'V' neck, with thin straps on her shoulders while the front of the dress fell just above her knees, the rest falling down behind her legs until it reached her feet. When she had first dressed it, Tenten had thought she looked like a slut; the fact she was showing more of her legs than she usually did had made her feel entirely exposed. However, now that she was actually alone with her thoughts, Tenten had to admit she did look good on it.

The only thing she ended up truly disliking was when Sakura and Ino had told her to wear the black earrings she was wearing. Tenten had agreed just because they would allow her to keep her hair on their usually buns as a trade.

"Where on earth is he?" Tenten growled as she looked up at the darkening sky, and then she sighed. For some reason she was nervous…what if her accompanying person was Neji? Tenten was still not certain if he was going to the masquerade, but since she had seen him shopping for clothes…

"Oi! Tenten!"

In confusion, Tenten looked to her side, only to allow her eyes to wide in surprise when she saw who her date was. Now, in terms of clothes he did look good, and thank heavens he was not wearing the clothes she had seen him pick at the store. On the contrary, he was wearing a pair of black pants and an amber shirt underneath a black jacket. And Tenten had to admit he did look appealing despite of his messy hair and idiotic grin.

"So you're my accompanying person, eh?" Tenten questioned as Naruto finally reached her side, but she mentally groaned; for a moment she truly had expected for Neji to show up. Oh, what could be the Fifth Hokage preparing?

"So it seems, but wow, allow me to say you look lovely!" Naruto flattered with his usual foxy grin, and Tenten smiled slightly at him. "Sorry if I'm not Neji though, I'm sure you would like if it was him instead of me."

"Don't be silly, I'll be seeing Neji at the masquerade anyway." Tenten spoke before raising her indigo mask with the form of a butterfly, and put it on her face so that her eyes were concealed. Naruto quickly mimicked her, but his mask was just a normal one, black with orange outlines. "So, shall we go?"

"Oh wait, I guess I have to do this right, ne?" Naruto questioned right when Tenten was about to start walking, and the brunette gave him a confused look only to smile slightly when he offered her his arm. "Shall we go now, ma'am?"

"Of course." Tenten replied as she entwined her arm with his own, and as they started walking she glanced at the boy, who was now rambling about his thoughts towards the masquerade. Despite of his hyper personality, Tenten had to admit that Naruto knew how to be sweet when he wanted to. Hinata was very lucky for liking such a guy, and Tenten had no problems in admitting that, the only thing that saddened her was that she knew Neji would never be like that.

* * *

She was so nervous that she was positive she was going to faint. No, that was not right, she was so nervous that she would have a heart attack when her date showed up, and then she would faint and ruin the night.

Yes, that was the plan; go red, faint, and ruin the night.

Now, why on earth was she feeling guilty for thinking that way? It was not as if her date could not go to the masquerade even if she fainted. In fact, she was positive that whoever was supposed to meet her, would leave her on the spot, and go to the party. It would surprise her if he did not.

Before she knew it, Hyuuga Hinata was twiddling with her fingers. And it had taken her so long to let go of that habit! Oh, she could not believe she was going back to the extremely shy girl she had been. No, she could not allow that to happen, but then why didn't her fingers stop fiddling?

"Calm down, Hinata, calm down…" the girl instructed herself as she closed her eyes, and moments later she took a deep breath. She was not in a dangerous mission; heck, her life was not even in danger, but then why did she feel so nervous?

Oh, deep down Hinata knew why.

Timidly Hinata glanced down at her dress, and blushed as she continued to stare at the violet colour. In spite of all her attempts to prevent Ino and Sakura from seeing the dress she was wearing, the two girls had ended up noticing it, and immediately forced her to try it on. And, well, the result was out for anyone to see.

It had been hopeless to try to convince the girls that she did not feel at easy with that kind of clothing, so now there she was, wearing the violet coloured dress. It was extremely simple, but Hinata still felt as if she was naked; there were two thin straps that tied up behind her neck while two others, thicker than the firsts, rested on her shoulders. The dress had some lace covering her cleavage since it had a low neck, but the skirt was very simple and it reached the floor, hiding her feet. Her dress was probably the most simple of all, without counting with Hana's.

But no matter what, Hinata still felt as if she was naked.

As she took a deep breath, Hinata increased her grip on her purple mask. All the girls had agree to wear the same masks, with the butterfly form. Only the colours changed in order to match the dresses, but there was something that Ino and Sakura had told Hinata, and that she could not erase from her mind.

"_Think of it Hinata; with this mask, you can try to cover your usual timid self, and become bolder. You should try to tell Naruto what you feel. Perhaps the mask will help you to feel daring, and you end up kissing him!"_

Even though she was alone, Hinata had not managed to stop herself from blushing ten shades of red as she recalled that moment. She could never, ever, tell Naruto what she felt for him. First of all, he simply saw her as a friend, nothing else. And secondly, he only had eyes for Sakura, who was the most beautiful girl of the group, and Hinata knew she had no chance next to her.

"Huh? Hinata, is that you?"

"Eh?"

In confusion, Hinata swirled around, carefully in order not to step on her dress. Even though they had never been close friends, Hinata had to admit that formal clothes did make him look different.

The bistre coloured pants made him look taller while the white shirt he was wearing underneath plus the bistre leather jacket made him look thinner. He was not wearing his mask yet, but Hinata guessed that had to do with the fact he was too busy munching the potato chips.

"Konban wa, Chouji." Hinata greeted as she bowed in respect, but she blushed in embarrassment when the boy suddenly stopped eating, his mouth dropped in surprise. Nervously, Hinata put a lock of hair behind her ear since Ino had decided she looked better with her hair down, reaching the middle of her back. "Y-You look different."

"_I_ look different? Hinata, you…you look stunning!" Chouji finally confessed, and Hinata looked down as she felt blood rushing up to her cheeks at full speed. "I swear Naruto is going to have a heart attack when he sees you!"

"Eh?" Hinata asked in confusion. Naruto, having a heart attack because of her? For some reason, that sounded way too farfetched.

"Oh, never mind, you'll see it yourself." Chouji spoke, before raising his bag of chips. "Want some? You look as if you're going to faint, although you are extremely red."

"N-No, thank you." Hinata replied before mentally wincing; had she returned back to her stuttering self too?

"Well, lets go then." Chouji spoke up before raising his arm, and with a timid smile, Hinata rested her hand on it. "And thank heavens Naruto isn't your date, imagine what would have happened if he had seen you now?"

"I'm sorry I'm not who you were expecting either." Hinata spoke in her soft voice, and Chouji chuckled.

"I'm sure she wouldn't have liked my company, so trust me, having you as my date is the best thing Tsunade-sama could have done." Chouji replied, and Hinata smiled softly at him; perhaps Chouji was right. Maybe it was better to see Naruto at the ball, and not before.

But then again, Hinata knew that no place was safe for her when Naruto was around.

* * *

With a growl, Sasuke stuffed his hands on his black pants pockets. He was not in a good mood; first he had been forced to accept that stupid thing people called mission. Then, he had been forced to go shopping and dress formally for that pointless ball. And now he was waiting for his so-called date, and since he was indeed in a very lucky week, he knew he was going to end up with Sakura or Ino.

Someone truly hated him, and in that situation Sasuke was positive that someone was Tsunade.

With a quick movement of his wrist, Sasuke loosened up his tie and opened the first button of his buttoned Prussian-blue shirt. He absolutely detested when people made him wait; that only made his irritation grow, and another reason why he was getting annoyed was because he knew that whoever was his date was making him wait on purpose.

By that time Sasuke had already forgotten that he did not know who his date was yet.

A warm breeze started playing with Sasuke's black leather jacket as he stuffed his hands back into his pants' pockets. He would be damned if he was to spend the whole night with an annoying girl by his side. He seriously did not know if he would be able to handle his anger if that happened.

It was true that both Sakura and Ino had matured over the years – they were both eighteen after all – but they still knew how to behave like obsessive fan girls. And Sasuke, no matter how he acted as if he did not care, knew fairly well that both girls could try to do something just to be his date.

"Uchiha Sasuke?"

At the unfamiliar voice, Sasuke looked away from the sky to look at the person standing a few meters away from him. He had never seen her before so Sasuke quickly tensed up; if she wanted to fight, he was ready.

"Who are you?" Sasuke asked with narrowed eyes, the wind blowing the girl's amethyst-purple hair so that the streaks were caressing her shoulders. She was not dressed for a fight; on the contrary, she was dressed as if she was going to a ball.

The woman, who was standing on the same spot, unmoving, was dressed in a viridian coloured Chinese dress that had, on the right side, the silver image of a tiger. There was also a black zipper that went from the turtleneck of the dress to the girl's left shoulder, but what caught Sasuke's attention was not what she was wearing. No, what attracted the Uchiha's attention was the black cloth around her eyes, hiding them from the world.

Now that was weird. Sasuke obviously did not know every person who lived in Konohagakure, but he was certain he had never crossed paths with that girl. Especially with that black cloth concealing her eyes.

"Who are you?" Sasuke questioned, narrowing his eyes when he noticed the corner of the girl's lips curling up into a small smile, but he still refused to drop his guard.

"I'm sorry, I forgot Tsunade-sama didn't introduce me. My name is Keanna Senko. I'm from Yukigakure." the girl introduced herself as she bowed slightly, but Sasuke still continued to stare weirdly at her. Did she really think he was going to believe in all that crap? "I can see you don't believe in me."

"Humph, why should I? I never saw you before in my life." Sasuke retorted, and Senko sighed. "What are you doing in Konohagakure? There is a huge distance between the Hidden Village Among Leaves and the Hidden Village Among Snow."

"I'm sure you're being polite, because I bet you already noticed this." Senko started before caressing he black cloth over her eyes with the tip of her fingers. "This was what brought me here. My family heard of Tsunade-sama's skills, and they sent me here to see if something could be done about my blindness."

"Then what are you doing here?" Sasuke questioned, in his cold voice, and Senko chuckled.

"Actually, I was caught by surprise. Tsunade-sama sent Shizune-san to my house, and she told me about this masquerade." Senko started. "I didn't want to come, but Tsunade-sama thought I deserved to have some fun before being locked up at the hospital. So, here I am."

"And how did you know you were supposed to come here, and that I'm truly your date?"

"Well, she kind of told me." Senko replied before pointing to her left, and Sasuke followed the indicated direction only to arch an eyebrow slightly when he saw Shizune standing next to a tree.

"Please, Sasuke, take Senko with you." Shizune started as she sighed, and slowly she stepped away from the shadows. "Tsunade was the one who indicated you, and I truly believe you're the right choice. But if you want, we can make a trade, and…I don't know, I can call Ino or something."

"You, Keanna, start walking." Sasuke grunted, his hands still stuffed inside his pockets, but mentally he was roaring. How had Shizune even dared to make such propose? It was obvious that he preferred to take his chances with an unknown girl to go with Ino to the ball.

"Hai." Senko muttered, and Sasuke could not help but blink in surprise when she started walking towards him as if she could see him. "Can you please lead the way?"

"Whatever."

Shizune watched Sasuke and Senko disappear into the night, Sasuke walking surprisingly close to the girl, probably to tell her which way to go. When the two young adults disappeared, Shizune took something from inside her sleeve, and stared at the wisteria coloured liquid inside the small bottle.

She truly hoped Tsunade knew what she was doing, because by now Shizune was too worried about the effects of that liquid to even support the Fifth Hokage in her insane plan.

**To Be Continued…**

I took the idea for the girls dresses (the _Naruto_ girls, not my OCs) from a pic I saw on the internet (therefore, I believe it's better to say I _**don't**_ own the dresses). So if you want to have a better idea of them, inform me, and I'll try to send you the url. Thanks for the attention!


	5. Look At Me

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing, except the plot and the unknown characters.

* * *

I want to thank **Silvan Arrow**, **A-bomber**, **xo4evagurlxo**, **SGCred**, **city with no people**, **Hinata'sbf**, **Ruki44**, **1sapphira1**, **LightningFox10****1**, **Brazilian Phoenix**, **WizKid94** _and_ **Terenin** for everything. Seriously, you guys rule!

* * *

**Chapter 5**

Look at Me

A laugh escaped Hana's lips as she continued to listen Lee telling her about a mission when apparently two brothers had tried to look like him and Maito Gai. The whole experience was already too funny, but the way Lee spoke – throwing his fist into the air while making weird voices – made everything hilarious.

And despite of everything, Hana was very happy for having Rock Lee as her date. Of course that when they had seen each other close to Ichiraku they had been surprised and a bit saddened for not having who they expected as their accompanying person, but they had also decided to be honest with each other.

It had not surprised Hana when Lee had confessed that he had been expecting for Sakura to be his date. Even though she was only there for two years, Hana had quickly understood that Lee did feel something for the pink haired girl that was deeper than friendship. As for Hana herself, she had also decided that it was only fair to tell Lee who she had wished to be her date.

Although, deep down, she had always known he would never be her date.

"And Naruto never actually understood that he had been tricked." Lee finally finished before shaking his head. "He truly is hopeless, you know?"

"Well, I guess that's what makes him special." Hana retorted as she giggled, and Lee looked at her before smiling warmly. "But you're right, he was probably really dense not to notice that those two were not you or Gai-sensei."

"I swear I'll never understand that guy." Lee replied with a small shake of his head, and Hana was about to comment when she noticed something. No, scratch that, she did not notice _something_, she noticed _two people_ walking inside the classroom that had miraculously been turned into a perfect place for a ball.

Hana noticed Sakura and Shikamaru walk inside, arm-in-arm.

As soon as her eyes fell on Sakura though, Hana looked away, her eyes darting to the ground. There was only one word to describe how Haruno Sakura looked in that night, and the word was _breathtaking_.

Of course that Hana had seen Sakura's dress when they had gone shopping, but to see the pink haired girl now was still a surprise. As she took a deep breath, Hana forced herself to look at the newcomers, and her eyes fell on Sakura's dress. Not surprisingly Sakura had chosen a cerise coloured dress which straps went around her neck and tied up behind it. It had a deep 'V' neck, enough to offer some freedom for some thoughts run wild, and there was a slit on the right side that went up to her knee. Sakura's hair was down, in its usual hairstyle, but it was easy to see the girl's rose earrings while a black chain was around her neck with a hot pink rose as a pendant. Just like it had been agreed, she was wearing a black mask with pink outlines with the form of a butterfly.

Shikamaru, on the contrary, was dressed somewhat formally. He was dressed in a pair of seal brown coloured pants with a white shirt that was not tucked inside his pants. With his free hand, Shikamaru was holding a jacket over his shoulder.

"She looks so…so…"

Slowly Hana adverted her eyes away from the newcomers, and looked at Lee only to see him gawking at Sakura. His expression was of someone who was truly in love with another, and despite of everything Hana sometimes wished that Sakura could look past Sasuke and see who else was around her.

"Lee, are you alright?" Hana questioned, resting a hand on the boy's arm, and Lee turned to her only to nod, but Hana refused to accept that as an answer. "C'mon, I don't want you to get all sad on me, alright?"

"It's just…well, I can't really expect her to look at me, can I?" Lee asked back in a low tone of voice, his eyes now turned to the table in front of them, and Hana felt a pang of sadness. When she saw that Lee was staring at his own outfit; a pair of black pants and a jade coloured shirt, she rested her hand on his, that was resting on the table.

"Don't think that way, you know that Sakura is not that superficial." Hana heard herself say as she started caressing the boy's hand with her thumb in a comforting manner. "Lee, please, look at me."

When the boy did not look up, Hana licked her lips and rested her hand underneath his chin, turning his head to him. When Lee finally looked at her, Hana mentally took a deep breath, and smiled slightly at him.

"Your clothes do not make you who you are." she started, "Your physical appearance doesn't make you who you are, so please, don't be sad. If you are, then I'll certainly be too."

"I'm sorry Hana, I truly am."

"Don't be, I completely understand." Hana whispered, now cupping the boy's cheeks, and then her smile grew. "C'mon, give me a huge and true smile. I bet you can do that."

"Are we interrupting something?" a voice questioned right when Lee had started to smile, and Hana looked to her side only to feel her breath get stuck in her throat when she saw it was Sakura and Shikamaru. Not that that was not expected, but Hana seriously did not feel like looking at the two of them.

Especially _him_.

Hana truly could not explain why, but she had developed feelings for the lazy genius. At the beginning she had only seen him as a friend; a friend of her cousin's, with whom she talked very well and hanged with. Shikamaru had always made her feel fine with herself, and Hana had always treasured that.

Until it started to change.

Hana was not certain about _when_ it started to change, but she did start feeling the differences. Hana often told herself that her feelings started to develop when she had began to work harder at the hospital, barely spending any time with her family and friends, but she could not be certain. All she knew was that ever since she had started working more and harder that she had started to miss Shikamaru's company…she had started to miss the moments when she would gaze at the clouds with him, and to have him calling her 'troublesome woman'.

And ever since then Hana had started to look at herself different. She started to realize that there were obvious reasons why Shikamaru would never look at her like Lee looked at Sakura. She was overweight, had bushy and wild hair, and was all but pretty, so it did not take long for Hana to understand why she would never talk about her feelings.

Not only that but she had also been told by Chouji that Shikamaru did seem to have a crush for a Suna kunoichi who was, according to Chouji, gorgeous and who actually did not mind fighting with Shikamaru all the time.

"Of course not!" Lee finally spoke-up, and Hana was forced to leave her thoughts only to see Sakura and Shikamaru sitting down with them. If Lee could behave as if everything was fine, then she could do the same. "So you guys came together, huh? Cool! Where's your mask, Shikamaru?"

"Your not wearing yours either." Shikamaru pointed out with a bored expression, and Lee chuckled while Hana glanced at Sakura, who smiled at her.

"You look beautiful, Hana." the pink haired girl stated, but Hana simply shook her head as she looked down. She would never look beautiful, in fact, she was only wearing that dress because Ino and Sakura had forced her to. There was no way on earth Hana would have been caught wearing that navy blue dress in other occasion; the fact its sleeves fell down her shoulders was already enough to make her uncomfortable.

"Yo!" Hana jumped in surprise at the sudden voice before looking at the person who was behind Shikamaru, smiling at the four at them. "You guys arrived early."

"Kakashi-sensei, I thought we were suppose to come all dressed up." Sakura commented as she eyed her teacher's Jounin outfit, but the older man just started laughing nervously while scratching the back of his head.

"This idiot here just knows how to go around the rule, so ignore him." a woman spoke as she appeared next to Kakashi, and then she smiled at the young adults. "My name's Mesi, and I'm here to keep an eye on all of you with this hentai here."

"I didn't think we actually needed a babysitter." Sakura pointed out before gasping when she glanced at the door. "Oh my…Tenten! You look so pretty!"

"And you look like a rose." Tenten replied as she walked towards her friends, Naruto next to her, but both stopped when they spotted the Jounin. "Hum, excuse me but are you sure you're on the right party? I mean, you're not our age."

"Ah, Kakashi-sensei, what are you doing here, wearing that?" Naruto questioned as he stared at his teacher with widened eyes. "That's so unfair you know? I had to spend all my money on this clothes, and you show up with _that_?"

"Don't complain, I'm older and therefore I have more freedom to chose whatever I want to wear." Kakashi pointed out, and Naruto twitched at his words. "Now go sit somewhere, and have some fun. This night is for you, not me."

"Like we're going to have some fun with you here." Naruto muttered under his breath, "You'll probably stare at all the girls in this room. Pervert."

"Oh, I like him!" Mesi spoke suddenly, and Naruto stared confusedly at her when she appeared next to him. "He has the same point of view as me when it comes to you, Hatake, which is surprising since he is your student."

"Crap, where did you find such a hot woman, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto questioned suddenly, but he yelped in pain when Mesi smacked him upside-down on the head. "Hey, what did I do?"

"Damn, I was wrong." Mesi growled under her breath, but everyone went silence when Sasuke and Senko emerged at the door. "Hey, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be at the hospital!"

"Mesi-san?" Senko questioned, raising an eyebrow, but Sasuke, who was still holding her arm, silently indicated her to follow him. "Tsunade-sama told me to come, something about me having fun while I can, and…Kakashi-sensei?"

"Yo!"

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura exclaimed suddenly as she stood up, and turned to the avenger, a dreamer look on her face. "Come, sit with us."

"Hey, get away from him, billboard brown!"

Hana only had time to acknowledge a blur of orchid color before sighing when she saw Ino with her arms wrapped around Sasuke's neck, her chest pressed against his back. Her hair was in her usual high ponytail, but it had been pulled into a long braid instead of falling freely down her back. What Ino failed to notice, since she was still in the same position while glaring at Sakura, was that some eyes were staring at her left leg, visible due to the slit that went above her knee. The rest of her dress covered her nicely except for her back since there were strips holding both sides of the dress while orchid colored gloves went up to her elbows.

"You get away from him, Ino-pig!"

"Is it just me, or hormones are already kicking in?" Mesi questioned in a whisper as she moved silently to Kakashi's side, and the Jounin chuckled at her words. "Now I understand why Tsunade wanted me to come, you'd prefer to watch a cat fight to stop them from getting to each other's throats."

"They're just kids."

"Yeah, but they're still girls, and you're a pervert." Mesi pointed out, and Kakashi sighed only to have the female Jounin continuing when he was ready to retort." Yeah, I know, you're not _that_ pervert, but better be safe."

"Let go of me." Sasuke growled under his breath, and Ino smiled sweetly at him before getting off his back.

"Sasuke-kun, you want to seat with us?" Sakura questioned as she stared hopefully at the boy, but Sasuke just glared at her before grabbing Senko's elbow, and pull the girl towards an empty table.

"Tsk, troublesome women…" Shikamaru muttered under his breath, and Hana glanced at him only to look away when Shikamaru gazed back at her, and then he sighed. "Man, this sucks…"

"Neji…" Tenten whispered as she stared at the Hyuuga member, but thankfully no one had noticed the faint blush on her cheeks. After all, it is not every day that you see the great Neji Hyuuga wearing black pants and a cream colored shirt. His hair was in its usual ponytail, but Tenten clenched her fists when she suddenly found herself wanting to get closer to him.

"Hey, how come there's no music?" Naruto asked suddenly, as he looked up at Kakashi and Mesi. "I don't know what a masquerade truly is, but a ball without music means no fun at all."

"He's right; Kakashi, music!" Mesi exclaimed with a small smile.

* * *

They were just outside the room when both Hinata and Chouji stopped their tracks at exactly same time. Chouji, surprisingly, was not eating anything; he was in fact shaking a little, but since Hinata was nervous as well, she failed to notice how the boy was behaving. However, what both of them noticed was that the two of them were dreading to step inside the room.

Inside there were just familiar faces. Yes, they were aware of that.

Inside were only their friends, who would never laugh at their faces. Yes, they were conscious of that.

Inside were the two ninja they loved. Yes, they knew that, and _that_ was the problem.

"Hum…Hinata?" Chouji called-out, and the Hyuuga heiress snapped from her thoughts to look at him. "I err…do you think I look good?"

"Yes Chouji, you look very handsome." Hinata answered in her quiet voice before resting her free hand on the boy's arm, which was linked with her right one. "I'm sure that whoever is that you like, will think the same."

"Well, I doubt that." Chouji started in a sad tone, but Hinata continued to observe him. "She's probably gawking at Sasuke, and thinking about Sasuke, and rambling about Sasuke. She'll never look at me while Sasuke is around. Don't take me wrong, I have nothing against him, but still…"

"I understand." Hinata spoke when the boy trailed off, and Chouji looked from the floor to her. "I know what it feels to…to be around the one you like and…well, to see him and to have him not seeing you because of someone else."

"Well, but Naruto is just being stupid if you ask me." Chouji started, and suddenly music erupted from the room, and Hinata looked away. "I mean if he actually stopped staring at Sakura… If you don't mind me saying, I think you are the perfect person for Naruto. He's too hyper, and you're way shy; together, you could find a balance."

"Chouji, who…do you want to tell me who you like?" Hinata asked as she looked up, and a faint blush covered her pale cheeks. "I know I probably won't be able to help, but…I think it's better when one confesses something to someone else. I understand if you prefer to tell Shikamaru since you're best friends, b-"

"Nah, it's alright, I don't think it's a secret." Chouji interrupted with a small shrug, "And don't ask me why or when this happened, but it's Ino. I have no idea why it had to be Ino of all people; she's superficial, and cares too much about how you look, but I don't know, sometimes she did reveal her fragile look, and…well, I don't know how to explain it."

"You're opposites too." Hinata whispered in her shy tone, and Chouji blinked. "Like Naruto and me."

"Did someone say my name?"

With wide eyes Hinata looked to the door in front of her, only to blush ten shades of red when she saw who was standing in front of her. What had made her blood start pulsating at full speed and up to her cheeks was unknown for Hinata, but she had the feeling it involved the way Naruto was dressed and the proximity between them.

"Oi Chouji, who's the hottie?"

Now that instead of helping Hinata, only made the Hyuuga heiress blush even harder while she started to feel lightheaded. Thankfully her arm was still linked with Chouji's so she could find balance by standing next to him.

"Hum, Naruto, I know we're supposed to wear masks and all, but I think its rather easy to see who she is." Chouji commented as he sweatdropped, and Naruto looked from him to Hinata, with a serious look on his face.

A long moment passed, during which Hinata had been staring at the floor, unable to meet Naruto's inquiring gaze while Chouji waited for the moment when Naruto would prove to the world he was not _that_ dense.

"Sorry, I seriously don't recall you from nowhere, and trust me, you're too pretty to be forgotten."

At that Chouji sweatdropped and sighed while Hinata dropped her head.

"Anou, Naruto-kun, it's me." the girl finally spoke as she raised her head, and Naruto stared at her for a few more minutes before widening his eyes in surprise at same time he stared looking at her up and down. "Hinata."

"Ah, Hinata, how…when…you…damn, you look…"

"I think he's trying to say you look awe-inspiring." Chouji decided to cut in, a smile on his face, and Hinata glanced at him, revealing her still present blush while Naruto continued to stare surprised at her.

"I…thank you, Naruto-kun." Hinata thanked, still not managing to meet his gaze, but she looked at Chouji again when he moved forward.

"C'mon, now it's my turn." Chouji whispered, in a hushed tone so that only Hinata could hear, and the girl nodded. "Naruto, step aside; you're blocking the door."

"Err…yeah, sure…" Naruto muttered, but he continued to watch Hinata walk inside the room, and go greet her friends that immediately started wolf whistling and clapping. He sure was an idiot.

She had seen him, and he had failed to see her.

**To Be Continued…**


	6. The Longest Night

**Disclaimer:** Everything here belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I only own my own characters and the plot of this fic. Nothing else is mine.

* * *

Okay, my readers asked, so here's the next update. I just want to thank **Chan-chan-hyper**, **LightningFox101**, **N.C.S**, **Silvan Arrow**, **A-bomber**, **zeta.the.devil**, **Terenin**, **SGCred**, **Ruki44**, **HT**, **SilverLegionare** _and_ **xo4evagurlxo** for everything! You guys rule!

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**Chapter 6**

The Longest Night**  
**

Kakashi could not help but chuckle as he continued to watch Sakura and Ino trying desperately to get Sasuke's attention. Sometimes those two knew how to behave like children, but Kakashi was aware he could not blame them, especially Sakura, who he knew ever since she became his student. Ever since he had meet Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura that Kakashi had been positive that his life would be everything except tranquil. Not that he had minded, but now that he was thirty, Kakashi did miss those times.

Times when every word that left his lips would count…times when his orders were heard…times when he did feel like he truly belonged to his students' lives.

But they eventually grew up, and drifted away from him. True, they still called him 'Kakashi-sensei', but that was simply because they wanted to show that they still respected him. Besides, Kakashi-san did sound weird…

With a sigh, Kakashi gazed at Naruto, and chuckled again when he saw how the boy kept glancing at Hinata, who was busy chatting quietly with Hana. Kakashi often wondered if it was going to take many years for Naruto to stop being so dense; he definitely wanted to be alive to see the blonde's wedding.

Well, like many people usually say; hope is the last thing to die.

Then, Kakashi glanced at the dance floor, or in order words, at the space on his right, empty of tables and chairs so that it was now a wide space where people could dance. Mesi was there, dancing around as she kept an eye on the young adults, but completely oblivious of how her moves were getting to him.

Sometimes Kakashi could swear Mesi did those kind of things on purpose.

"Oi, what are you? A bunch of people who can't shake their skeletons?" Mesi questioned suddenly, and Kakashi shook his head as he watched everyone turning to the female Jounin. "You either start dancing, or I'm going to make you."

"Eh? And what do you intend to do to make us dance?" Lee questioned, but Kakashi grabbed Mesi's wrist as soon as he saw the flash of wickedness that had crossed her unmatched eyes.

"Lee, trust me, you really don't want to find out." Kakashi spoke as he turned to the young adults, who stared at him for a moment before glancing at each others. "But Mesi's right; you didn't stop bothering us until we turned the music on, and now you're afraid of dancing?"

"Well, maybe we…can't dance?" Naruto asked back, looking rather nervous, and Kakashi sighed while Mesi shook her head.

"Ok, I have to agree with Tsunade on this; this generation is a disgrace to all village." the female Jounin muttered, and everyone sweatdropped at her words while Kakashi sighed. "But I'll try to save the little bit of dignity you guys have left, so…Hatake, come here."

"Oh no, I err…I don't know how to dance either." Kakashi replied, shaking his head, his hands up in the air, but he gulped when Mesi sent him her usual fulminating glare. "I hum…alright, I guess I can try…"

_"Did I hear someone say they can't dance?"_ a voice asked suddenly, and everyone started looking around when a maniac laughter was heard above the music, and Kakashi dropped his head.

That did not sound good.

"_Allow me to show these kids what it means to shake the skeleton."_

Suddenly a cloud of smoke filled the whole room, and everyone immediately started coughing as they covered their faces with their hands. Kakashi, on the other hand, just sweatdropped when he saw a familiar figure emerge in the middle of the room, Mesi standing beside him, watching everything with an arched eyebrow.

"Yo!"

"Ahh, Ero-sennin!" Naruto shouted as he stood up from his chair, that consequently fell on the floor, and the man in the middle of the room smirked as he rested a hand on his hip. His long white and spiky hair fell down his back, but his eyes were already scanning the whole area. "What are you doing here?"

"I was told Tsunade was trying to release some hormones. Do you really think I was going to miss this?" the man questioned before glancing at Hinata, and a mischievous look appeared in his eyes. "Damn, Konoha girls are getting hotter these days."

"Pervert!" Naruto yelled angrily while Hinata blushed ten shades of red, all the other girls blushing as well. Jiraiya, on the contrary, simply smirked at the blond before turning on his heels.

"I believe a dancing class is in order." the older man spoke up, and he surprised everyone when he suddenly appeared in front of Mesi, and rested a hand on her hip. "Shall we dance, my lady?"

"I'm not going to resign myself to the thought of being surrounded by perverts, you know?" Mesi questioned, but Jiraiya simply winked at her before holding her hand, and pull the woman to the middle of the dance floor. "And what on earth do you think you're doing?"

"Dancing with a hot babe, what else?" Jiraiya asked back, but Mesi yelped when he suddenly pulled her closer to his body, and then he entitled his head so that his lips were just beside her ear. "I thought the purpose of this mission was to make a lot of blood boil."

"Just consider you're lucky enough for being dancing with me." Mesi whispered back as she also approached her head to the man's ear, and Jiraiya grinned at her. "But dare to make any stupid movement, and you'll regret it for life, and you'll stop being the pervert womanizer known everywhere. And trust me, I'm sure a lot of women would be happy for finally being able to walk on the streets without having to look over their shoulders."

"By the way you're talking it sounds as if I'm some sort of stalker." Jiraiya mumbled back, and this time a small laugh escaped from Mesi's lips.

Kakashi, on the meantime, was watching Mesi and Jiraiya dancing extremely close even though the song that was playing was fast. As he sighed, he looked at the younger adults on the opposite side, and sighed again when he saw the boys' eyes staring at Mesi while the girls were blushing and looking everywhere except at the dance floor.

That was going to be a _very_ long night.

* * *

That was the most pathetic mission he had ever been forced to accomplish.

No, pathetic was not enough to describe that…that _thing_ people had labelled as mission. That was the most self-indulgent, maddening and useless thing he had ever seen. And to think that he had actually agreed to show up! Not only that but Tsunade had dared to chose Ino of all people to be his accompanying person.

Oh, his ears still hurt every time he recalled how she had started protesting about having to accompany him to the whole world.

And now, as if everything else was not humiliating enough, they were expecting him to dance? _Him_, Hyuuga Neji, a _genius_? The world had seriously gone mad if they were really waiting for him to invite Ino, and step in that thing they called dance floor. Watching Mesi and Jiraiya dancing _that_ close was infuriating enough.

Pressing his arms against his chest, Neji did his best to ignore Sakura and Ino's fight; apparently the two of them wanted to dance with Sasuke. And apparently the two of them had forgotten that the boy in question needed to want to go dancing as well, and by looks of things, Sasuke was not leaving his chair during the whole night.

"Neji, I never thought I would see the day." a familiar voice commented, but the boy did not have to look up to know who it was. "May I be honest, and say that you do look good?"

"I guess that's your best way of saying I don't look good everyday." Neji commented before he could stop himself, and he heard a chuckle from beside him.

"Don't twist my words like that, Hyuuga, or I won't compliment you again." Tenten stated with a small smile, and Neji felt the corner of his lips curling up into his trade-mark smirk. "Hey, that looks fun, doesn't it?"

"I don't do dancing." Neji replied, not really having to look up to know to what Tenten was staring. "Go ask your date to go with you."

"And ruin Hinata's chance of asking him to dance with her?" Tenten questioned before waving a hand in dismiss. "No offence Neji, but everyone is waiting to see those two finally get together tonight, and it won't be me who'll ruin the opportunity."

"You are expecting to see my cousin and Naruto get together?" Neji questioned, finally looking up, but he blinked in surprise when he finally noticed what Tenten was wearing. Now that was not something one could see on a daily basis, and Neji was, for lack of words, shocked. Who would thought that his team mate could actually look like a girl? Not that Neji had not noticed that she was, but damn…

"Oi, Neji, you with me?" Tenten questioned, waving a hand in front of the boy's face, and Neji cleared his throat as he tried to regain his posture. "I asked, what's wrong with that? I mean, c'mon, you have to admit it would be sweet to see the two of them together."

"Sweet? I never thought you actually cared about the romantic field." Neji stated, and Tenten sighed as she glanced at Hinata and Naruto before smiling down at her team mate.

"I guess that's Sakura and Ino's influence." Tenten answered with a small chuckle, and Neji shook his head. "But c'mon, at least admit you would like to see your cousin happy."

"What makes you think Naruto is the right person for Hinata-sama?" Neji questioned as he stared at Tenten's eyes, and the girl sighed.

"What makes you think he isn't?"

With a sigh, Ino sat down on the closest chair, which was right next to Lee since Hana was standing and talking to Hinata close to a window. The blonde immediately crossed her arms and legs, an angry look on her face as she watched Sakura approaching Sasuke with a smile. Ino seriously did not know what had made her drop the discussion, but whatever it was, it was annoying her.

However, her irritation also had to do with a certain bet she had done with Sakura. They were to tell Lee and Chouji what they truly felt for the boys; the problem was that Ino did not want to tell Chouji anything. And the main reason was her heart and her damned emotions.

With a growl, Ino gazed to her side, and sighed when she spotted Chouji next to the table filled with food, stuffing his mouth as usual. She did not know why, but she did not feel capable enough of going to him, and tell Chouji what she thought of him.

_"Fine! If I'm the one who goes to the ball with Sasuke-kun, you have to tell Chouji that you love him!" Sakura snapped back, and a mix of horror and shock appeared in Ino's face. "Yes, because I know you like him!"_

A growl escaped Ino's lips as she remembered the moment of the bet. The worst part was that, even though on the moment of the bet Ino had denied it, the truth was that she _did_ feel something strange towards Chouji. She could not explain what it was for sure because it was not what she felt towards Sasuke. Ino did care a lot for the Uchiha boy, she cared so much for him that Ino knew she had mistaken it for love, but she knew her feelings would never be as deep as Sakura's. That was why she liked to quarrel with Sakura; through their fights, Ino could see that her rival did love Uchiha Sasuke.

But Chouji was different. Ino was not entirely sure of when it had started, but it had, and she felt the differences. She felt the way her body seemed to warm up every time Chouji tried to make her smile…she felt how her stomach seemed to twist in a tight knot every time something happened to Chouji…

And yet Ino knew that could never be. She had always believed that fat people had love problems, and Chouji was the living proof of that. At the age of eighteen, Ino knew Chouji had yet to have his first kiss and had yet to go through his first passion. It was not as if Ino was an expert on that field, but she had always thought that it was impossible for someone like her to fall for someone like Akimichi Chouji.

"Tsk, you're going to make a hole in his head." a bored voice spoke suddenly, and Ino snapped from her thoughts only to look to her side, and see that Shikamaru was now sitting on the chair Lee had previously occupied. "If you have something to tell him, just go, don't be so troublesome."

"I don't have anything to tell Chouji." Ino snapped before looking down while Shikamaru arched an eyebrow. "Darn it Shikamaru, why does this have to be so damn complicated?"

"Something must be truly bothering you. I never heard you curse before." Shikamaru said with a sigh, and Ino dropped her shoulders in tiredness before nodding slightly. "Does it have to do with our chubby friend?"

"Shikamaru, look at me!" Ino exclaimed suddenly, and the boy blinked. "I'm pretty, I'm intelligent…it's plain stupid for me to fall for him! I mean, why did I have to look at him off all people? Damn, even Shino is better looking than him."

"Appearance isn't everything, Ino, you should know that better than anyone." Shikamaru started as he leaned his back against the chair, his hands now resting behind his neck. "It's a drag, but hey, you know that Chouji is a great person."

"I don't even know why I'm having this conversation with you; you're his best friend, of course you're going to take his side." Ino muttered under her breath as she glanced down at her hands that were resting on her lap. Then, she stood up, but before she could walk away, Shikamaru grasped her wrist, and forced her to sit down again.

"Listen Ino, Chouji may be my best friend, but you're my team mate." Shikamaru started in a low tone, and Ino blinked at him. "You're eighteen, you're supposed to be past that superficial tendency you have. Stop looking at the appearance. Do you really think you're going to look like you do now forever?"

"Why are you doing this?" Ino questioned, her words leaving her lips in a whisper, and Shikamaru sighed before glancing at a point behind Ino, and then he dropped his hand. "I don't understand…"

"Because you're a troublesome woman, who's too obsessed with a guy to notice what exists around you." Shikamaru finally muttered. "Man, this sucks, I'm not even good at this stuff, and here I am, telling you to go talk with Chouji."

"Well, I…"

"Are you ashamed of him?" Shikamaru questioned suddenly, and Ino closed her mouth at his question. "Are you ashamed of being seen with him?"

"Of course not, what kind of question is that?" Ino snapped, but she gulped when she felt someone approach her from behind. Slowly, Ino looked over her shoulder, and her eyes meet a pair of dark ones.

"Hey Ino, I err…sorry for interrupting, but I err…well…" Chouji trailed off, and Ino slowly turned to him on the chair while Shikamaru took the opportunity to walk away. "I just…well, I'll feel bad for Mesi-san and Jiraiya-sama, so err…do you want to d-dance with me?"

For some reason she could not explain, Ino felt her breath get stuck in her throat, her cheeks warming up at a scary speed.

That was definitely going to be a long night.

* * *

A small laugh abandoned Mesi's lips as Jiraiya twirled her around before pulling her gently to him. Who would have thought that a pervert like him actually knew how to dance? And the biggest surprise was that he was truly behaving, and up until now he had not crossed the line.

Though Mesi was positive that that had something to do with her little threat about not allowing him have any more fun with women.

As Mesi allowed Jiraiya to rest his hand on her hip again, she glanced at the young adults, and grinned when she saw Ino accepting the hand Chouji had extended at her. Mesi felt even happier when she saw Ino and Chouji approach the dance floor, and start dancing slowly. Moments later Mesi saw Lee questioning Hana if she wanted to dance, both blushing slightly, but Hana ended up following Lee to the dance floor.

But now had that been a flash of jealousy Mesi had seen crossing Shikamaru's eyes? Hum, perhaps that masquerade was going to get more interesting. However, when Mesi was about to step forward, Jiraiya rested both his hands on her waist, and she looked inquisitively at him.

"It's time to spice things up." Jiraiya whispered into Mesi's ear, and she blinked as she stared at him, and watched a smirk appear on his face. Now why didn't that sound fun? "Stay away from the drinks the entire night though."

"What the heck are you going to do?" Mesi questioned in a soft tone so that the couples dancing around them could not hear her words, but Jiraiya simply winked at her before walking away. For a moment Mesi just stood in the middle of the dance floor, watching Jiraiya approaching the banquet, but she arched an eyebrow when she saw him take something from inside a pocket.

And even from afar Mesi could make out the wisteria coloured liquid inside.

And for a moment Mesi was dreading to find out what that was all about.

"You know, I'm hurt." a voice spoke suddenly, and the female Jounin rolled her eyes when she felt someone appear from behind her. "I mean, you dance with the model of all perverts, and yet you don't want me even to look at you."

"Aw, Hatake is feeling lonely." Mesi retorted as she turned to her side, her arms now pressed against her chest, but she smiled when her eyes meet Kakashi's. "You poor thing, but you know, at least Jiraiya knows when to take a threat seriously, now you…"

"What about me? I'm a man, and you should take my words as praises." Kakashi pointed out, and Mesi shook her head. "But every time I glance at you, you threat me about hurting me where it hurts the most."

"You know, Hatake, if I didn't know better, I would say you're jealous." Mesi pointed out before raising a hand, and tap Kakashi on his covered nose, a smile on her face. "And you're cute when you're jealous."

"Tsk, conceited much?"

"Nope, I just like to observe." Mesi corrected with a wink, and then she took one step closer to Kakashi so that their chests were barely touching. "But who knows, if you behave, I might end up dancing with you tonight."

"You know, if I didn't know better, I would say you're toying with my hormones." Kakashi stated suddenly, and Mesi found herself laughing at his words before shaking her head, and then she rested a hand on her hip.

"Well, if you want me to." she whispered, and slowly she kissed Kakashi on his covered cheek before turning around, and walk towards Jiraiya.

Kakashi, on the meantime, was watching Mesi walk away, his eyes glancing at all her curves before swallowing hard.

Yep, that was going to be a very long night indeed.

**To Be Continued…**


	7. 1, 2 Step

**Disclaimer:** Masashi Kishimoto…the one who brought _Naruto_ to us. I simply borrowed the characters of the anime, mixed them with some of my own, and created this fic. So nothing is mine, except for my own OCs and the plot.

* * *

Alright people, I have to thank **SGCred**, **kibagaaralover18**, **netbreaker0**, **Silvan Arrow**, **xo4evagurlxo**, **Desperatine**, **HT**, **Ruki44**, **SilverLegionare**, **Blossoms of Spring**, **IKSM**, **Brazilian Phoenix** _and_ **city with no people** for everything! I also want to leave here a very special thanks to **Terenin**, who has been of a great help, and to whom I owe a lot. Thank you for helping me, and I also want to thank everyone else for the constant support. I'm very happy to know that despite of everything, you are enjoying this!

* * *

**The Reason Why I Posted This Chapter So Quickly: **People, after this chapter, I would really appreciate if you told me with whom you would like to see Sakura with; if with Sasuke or with Lee. However, I must repeat what I said on the first chapter; I am _**not**_ a Sakura/Sasuke fan, but if majority wins, I will try to write about them as a couple (well, the better I can since this is Sasuke we're talking again, and I'm not a fan of those two as a couple). Thank you for the attention, and I hope some of you don't mind helping me out with this.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

1, 2 Step

A growl escaped Sasuke's lips as he watched Chouji, Ino, Lee, Hana, Mesi and Jiraiya dancing on the dance floor. Not that the fact they were dancing was getting to his nerves (about that Sasuke seriously could not care less), but to notice how everyone was slowly giving in into that pathetic thing _was_ becoming annoying. He could not believe how easily people traded a long afternoon training for a masquerade that was everything except a masquerade. People were not even truly wearing a costume to disguise themselves!

That was simply a waste of time!

Not only that, but even there Sakura and Ino did not leave him alone. Well, the last one had apparently given up since she was now dancing with Chouji, but Sakura… Oh, Sasuke did not even know what else he could do to make the girl understand that he was not interested in dancing. He was already in a bad mood for having to be there, but to have people begging him to do what he disliked…

"Sasuke-kun?" a familiar voice called-out, and the Uchiha mentally sighed. Well, there was one thing he had to admit, Sakura knew when to be persistent. Even if it was about the wrong things. "Just one dance."

"Sakura, I don't dance." Sasuke replied through gritted teeth, and the girl next to him sighed sadly. Now, Sasuke was no fool; he knew that Sakura had the hots for him, but there were other guys she could ask to dance. That obsession of hers about him was truly becoming unhealthy. For both of them!

"Well, I'm going to get a drink, do you want something?" Sakura questioned, and Sasuke muttered a 'whatever' before he had time to stop himself, and Sakura stood up before walking away.

"You know, she's obviously being honest about only wanting to dance one time with you." a voice commented, and Sasuke glanced to his side where Senko was, her head turned to the dance floor. "You can sense it in her voice."

"Tsk, already behaving as if you know me or everyone else on this room for that matter?" Sasuke questioned as he crossed his arms against his chest, but he raised an eyebrow when he saw the corner of Senko's lips curling up.

"I may have this covering my vision," the girl started, caressing the black cloth that was hiding her eyes, the smile still on her face, "but believe in me when I say that I do see things differently. Not better, just differently, because the lack of vision allowed me to develop all my other senses."

"You definitely don't know Sakura." Sasuke heard himself state, and Senko turned her head to him. "She's the most insufferable girl I ever had the displeasure of meeting."

"I'm certain you're only saying that." Senko started, and Sasuke snorted. "The way you talk to her…it may carry all your rage about her request, but it's also true that you're snapping at her because you don't want to be here."

"What makes you say that?" Sasuke questioned, raising both of his eyebrows in wonder, his arms still pressed against his chest, and the girl chuckled as she pulled an amethyst-purple streak away from her face.

"You're tense." Senko explained in a simple manner, and Sasuke rolled his eyes. "You were tense when we meet, you entered in this room already disliking the idea of being here, and Sakura…she's the one who's spending all night trying to make you relax, therefore she's the one who suffers with your bad mood."

"Clearly I can't leave." Sasuke growled, and he saw Senko shaking her head by the corner of his eyes, and he mentally sighed. "Now what?"

"I just believe that if you dance with her, she'll stop bothering you." the girl started in a calm tone, and once again Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Besides, you have nothing to lose if you do, unless you don't know how to dance."

"Foolishness."

"No, that's what people will think you stay on that chair the whole night." Senko corrected, but before Sasuke had time to reply, Sakura returned, holding two cups of juice. One she quickly handed to Sasuke, before raising the other to her lips.

"I don't know what this is, but it sure tastes nice." Sakura pointed out after lowering her hand, and Sasuke glanced at her before sipping a bit of his drink as well. "So, Sasuke-kun, since you don't want to dance, I'll just go see if one of the other guys wants to."

Even though he could not explain why, Sasuke glanced at Senko, whose head was turned to the dance floor again. For a moment he wondered; would Sakura truly leave him alone if he danced with her once? Damn, he seriously did not know why he was listening to a strange blind girl!

"Wait." Sasuke spoke up when Sakura was about to turn around, and after a deep breath he stood up, his drink forgotten on the table next to him. Sakura, on the meantime, was staring at him in confusion. "One dance, and you leave me alone."

"Hai!" Sakura exclaimed, but she flashed Sasuke with a huge white smile before grabbing his arm, and pull him towards the dance floor. Senko, on the meantime, was moving her right foot at the rhythm of the music, her hearing indicating her where everyone was.

Keanna Senko seriously did not know what had possessed Tsunade to send her there. Since she was blind, Senko could not do what everyone around her was doing, but it was also true that Senko had the feeling Tsunade had ordered her to go because of something deeper. Ever since Senko had lost her vision at the age of seven that she had trained herself both mentally and physically so that she could learn how to deal with her lost. However, through the training Senko also gained the ability to sense things others did not sense on a daily basis.

Just like she had done with Sakura and Sasuke. Senko was positive that after one dance Sakura would stop bothering Sasuke to dance with her; she could not say if Sakura was going to stop pestering Sasuke during the rest of the night, but she had not find it necessary to add that little detail. As for Sasuke, Senko had in fact sensed his tension ever since she had meet him, and she was optimistic about Sakura managing to make Sasuke loosen up.

"May I?" a voice asked suddenly, and Senko snapped from her thoughts only to nod. "I believe we haven't been introduced yet; my name is Rock Lee."

"Ah yes, I've heard of you. My name is Keanna Senko." the blind girl introduced herself with a small smile. "You're the student of Maito Gai, am I correct? The ninja who proved everyone in Konohagakure that you can be the best in taijutsu when you have no ability to use ninjutsu and genjutsu?"

"I err…I had no idea I was famous." Lee spoke embarrassedly as he scratched the back of his head, and Senko continued to smile at him.

"Tsunade-sama speaks very highly of you." she explained, "She told me about your operation even though the chance of survival was around fifty percent. I admire you a lot, Rock Lee."

"Oh, hum…thanks." Lee thanked, still looking and sounding embarrassed. "But I never saw you around here."

"It would be a surprise if you did, I'm a ninja from Yukigakure." Senko concluded, and Lee muttered an 'ah' in understanding.

"Well, what do you say about us having a drink while we talk a little bit?" Lee questioned, and Senko entitled her head to the side slightly, and despite of everything the boy blushed in embarrassment. "If you don't mind talking to me, of course."

"You kidding me? It's an honour to talk to you!" Senko exclaimed, before raising a hand to her lips, and Lee blinked at her behaviour. "Sorry. Like I was saying, I don't mind talking to you; you were actually one of the reasons why I decided to come to Konohagakure."

"Well, give me just a sec, and then I'm all yours." Lee replied, and Senko nodded before feeling him walk away.

It was true; one of the reasons why she had accepted to do the operation was Rock Lee himself. When Tsunade had told her about the boy's tale, Senko had decided that she would not lose anything by trying to do the operation. The worse that could happen was Senko being blind forever, but the girl was growing used to that idea.

"Back!" Lee exclaimed suddenly, and Senko chuckled to herself. Apparently Tsunade had not be joking when she had mentioned Lee's incredible speed.

* * *

With a sad sigh, Naruto watched Sakura leading an annoyed Sasuke to the dance floor. However, the sadness that had suddenly taken over his limbs had nothing to do with the scene he was witnessing. Well, it did hurt to see that Sakura truly cared for Sasuke in a way that had nothing to do with the very twisted way of hers to look after him, but Naruto was slowly getting used to the idea.

Besides, it was not as if he could do something to make Sakura stop liking Sasuke. Unfortunately, things did not work that way, so Naruto had finally decided to get used to that. Besides, at the moment he was more interested in thinking about a certain girl to be watching Sakura and Sasuke dancing.

Slowly Naruto brought the glass he had been holding to his lips. For some reason that passion fruit juice had a strange colour; a dark yellow-orange colour that Naruto could not help but find weird. But since it still tasted good, the blond just decided to shrug it off.

What he could not shrug off was the only girl he had failed to recognize.

And Naruto felt pretty stupid now too.

Silently Naruto allowed his eyes to slide away from Sakura and Sasuke, and he gazed at the quiet girl who was now sitting on a table next to Shikamaru. She looked rather bored, since it was Shikamaru who was sitting next to her, Naruto knew he could not expect anything else. All he wanted though, was to be able to go talk to her.

Nervously Naruto finished his drink before putting the empty glass on the closest table, and before he knew it, his feet were leading him to her. He seriously did not know what was making his legs move, but Naruto knew it was better to think of a subject to talk to Hinata.

After all, he definitely needed to start behaving more accordingly to his age when around the shy Hyuuga.

"Err…hey, Hinata." Naruto greeted, feeling rather nervous, and he gulped when he stopped beside the girl, who looked up in confusion. "I err…it's a nice night, isn't it? Err…Tsunade-basan had a great idea, ne?"

"H-Hai." Hinata stuttered as she continued to look at him with her big pale eyes.

As he struggled to think about something intelligent to say, Naruto found himself staring at Hinata's eyes. Now that he was close enough to observe them (and was actually paying attention), Naruto had to admit that Hinata's eyes were different from Neji's. Neji's eyes were cold, and so penetrating that they seemed to see even the darkest desire of one's soul, but Hinata's…

Naruto felt himself grow tense as he continued to stare at the girl's eyes. Hinata's eyes were filled with warmth, and they were so easy to read. Well, kind of; Naruto had never bothered to actually look at them, but now that he was…well, Naruto had to admit he was loving it.

"I err….I was thinking…since Chouji and Ino have broken the ice, I err…I was wondering if you'd like to dance with me?" Naruto spoke hesitantly, but he blinked when he saw a red colour spreading through Hinata's pale cheeks. "I err…I can't dance though, and I'll probably end up stepping on your feet, but…"

"Alright." Hinata interrupted Naruto's rambling, and the boy blinked at same time he noticed the girl's face becoming even redder. Now that he was actually looking at her, Naruto _had_ to admit Hinata did look pretty when she blushed. "I hum…I don't mind you stepping in my feet, Naruto-kun, as long it's not too hard."

"Hehe, I'll try to be careful." Naruto laughed nervously as he scratched the back of his head, but he raised a hand when he saw that Hinata was about to stand up. When she was finally on her feet, Naruto slowly lead the girl towards the dance floor, his eyes gazing at Sasuke and Sakura.

Naruto did not know what was going on with him, but at the moment all he could think of was about how Hinata's hand seemed to fit his. Aside from that, Naruto was not even feeling sad by watching his two team mates getting closer while all he did was observe them from afar.

Perhaps it had been something he ate. Or maybe it was the strange passion fruit juice. Well, whatever it was, it did not really matter for the moment. All Naruto wanted was to go to the dance floor, and shake his body.

"So what am I supposed to do?" Naruto questioned after glancing around, and he saw all his friends dancing rather close. Even Sasuke and Sakura were dancing strangely close, but Naruto guessed that had something to do with the fact the music that was playing at the moment was slow.

"Well, first of all, you err…put your right hand on my hip, and grasp my left hand with yours, holding it about your shoulder-level." Hinata instructed, and Naruto nodded before doing what he was told. Hinata, afterwards, rested her right arm on his shoulder, standing about a foot away from him. "Okay, now err…you can lead the dance, but I can do it too."

"Hum…mind doing it first? I just want to be sure I do everything right." Naruto replied, looking rather embarrassedly, but his lips curled into a small smile when Hinata giggled softly at his words.

"Just relax, Naruto-kun, it's just a dance and it's just me." Hinata pointed out, and Naruto chuckled. "Alright, hum…you know, you should give it a try. All you need to do is push or pull my left hand, indicating which direction you want to go. Just move slowly okay? There's no need to be so tense."

"What about the feet?" Naruto questioned after trying to memorize everything Hinata had said, and the girl smiled. "Seriously, have you noticed the size of my feet? I don't want to hurt you."

"It's easy, Naruto-kun, for example, if you move your right foot backwards, my left foot will go forward." Hinata explained, and Naruto nodded again. "Just remember to lift the foot your weight is not on, and slide it to the direction you want. I'll follow you."

"Okay, I think I got it!" Naruto exclaimed, and hey, he was actually feeling excited about the whole dancing thing. Sure he was probably going end up making fool of himself, but for some reason Naruto felt as if he could do all stupidities in front of Hinata because he knew that all she would do was smile and help him out.

And for some strange reason, such thought warmed Naruto on the inside.

* * *

With a sigh, Shikamaru rested his hands behind his neck, a bored expression on his face. As he leaned against the back of the chair he was occupying, Shikamaru gazed around the room; Lee was talking with the foreign girl, Neji and Tenten were talking, but since the brunette had a hand stretched Shikamaru could say that Tenten had finally convinced Neji to dance. Ino and Chouji, along with Naruto and Hinata, Sasuke and Sakura were dancing on the dance floor.

Jiraiya was stuffing his face with some cake while he talked with Mesi, Kakashi watching the two of them with a serious face although he was holding his book. And as for Hana…

Slowly Shikamaru glanced to his left, and saw Hana there, holding a plate while she stared through the window next to her. Shikamaru had to admit the girl did look different with the dress she was wearing; since he was used to see her in baggy pants and shirt, Shikamaru had to admit that that navy blue dress did make Hana look…thinner and prettier. Not that she was not pretty everyday, but she still made quite an impression.

Even though she did not seem to be aware of that.

For a moment Shikamaru just observed the girl, who seemed to be completely unaware of the fact she was the center of someone's attention. He could still remember when Hana had first showed up at Konoha; Chouji had been showing her the village, and had taken her to their secret place. At the time Shikamaru had been at the top of the building, staring at the clouds, and had welcomed the girl with his tired manner.

At the beginning Shikamaru had not paid much attention to Hana, mostly because he was always expecting her to become a Sasuke-fanatic, but when she did not… In fact, when Hana made it clear that she preferred to observe the clouds with him to hear Sakura and Ino's squeals…well, Shikamaru had been caught-off-guard.

And from that moment on, the two of them had started to hang out more, always with Chouji. Sometimes Hinata would accompany them too (apparently, Hana and Hinata had become real close friends, probably because the two of them were really shy and quiet when they wanted to). But there were also times when the two of them would be alone, and it would be then that Hana would reveal something that had always puzzled Shikamaru.

Every time he would said that something was troublesome or that Hana herself was a pain, the girl would simply smile at him or even giggle. At the beginning Shikamaru had been perplexed by her behavior, but as time continued to pass by the lazy boy started to…valorize that smile.

Shikamaru had never understood what seemed to draw him to Hana. She was the complete opposite of Temari, being really quiet when around strangers, but always laughing when with friends. Hana was not a model of beauty, she was nothing compared with Sakura and Ino, but there was something about her…well, Shikamaru had never been able to say what exactly, but whatever it was, it was drawing him to her.

Slowly Shikamaru reached for the glass that was on the table, and took one last sip before standing up. Pressing his hands behind his neck, Shikamaru silently made his way towards the girl, who was still completely oblivious of him. He seriously did not know what to say to her, but Shikamaru guessed that even if he did not say anything, they would still make company to each other.

"Oi, what are you doing here all by yourself?" Shikamaru questioned suddenly, and Hana tore her eyes away from the window to gaze at him. "Even your cousin managed to drag Ino to the dance floor."

"Yes, I've noticed." Hana replied, glancing at the dance floor, and a small smile graced her features. "At home he kept asking me if he should approach Ino or not, because he was really worried she would just spit a _no_ and turn her back to him."

"Tsk, I'm surprised myself." Shikamaru retorted, but when he sighed, Hana turned her eyes to him. "But for what I noticed, people are pretty much behaving out of character tonight. I'm sure this has to do with the Hokage."

"Why do you say that?" Hana asked, arching an eyebrow at his words, and Shikamaru sighed before motioning for her to look at the dance floor with his hand.

"Everyone's dancing." the boy pointed out, now stuffing his hands into his pockets while Hana observed the dance floor. "Heck, even Uchiha and Neji are dancing. You have been here for two years, I'm sure you noticed that those two live for their improvement, and not for leisure."

"Well, there's always a first time for everything." Hana commented as she turned her head to Shikamaru again, and the boy tsk'ed. "It must be bad for you though, to see everyone dancing with whom they like when you can't do the same."

"Eh? What's that supposed to mean?" Shikamaru questioned, but to be honest he was not sure if he wanted to find out. The way Hana had quickly glanced at the floor indicated that something unenthusiastic was going to come out from her lips.

"Well, I was told that you…well, that you like a Suna konoichi, and hum….obviously, she's not here, so…" Hana trailed off when someone shouted her name, and Shikamaru looked to his side only to see Lee running towards them.

"Oi, Shikamaru, mind staying with Senko?" Lee asked as soon as he reached his friends' side, "She's not a fan of dancing, and since I know you don't like to dance because it's too troublesome, I decided to come and invite Hana to come and dance with me."

"Again?" Hana asked before Shikamaru even had time to open his mouth, and she smiled softly at Lee when he nodded, but then he rose his hands in the air.

"Not that you are the last resort or anything, it's just…well…"

"Fine Lee, I accept. Besides, dancing with you is an adventure." Hana interrupted with a small giggle, but she turned to Shikamaru before walking away. "And don't be sad, Shikamaru, I'm sure that she would be here if she could."

As he watched Lee taking Hana to the dance floor by the arm, Shikamaru narrowed his eyes slightly, and grunted when he heard Hana laughing. For some reason he felt the need to murder whoever had told Hana about his _allegedly_ relationship with Temari.

**To Be Continued…**


	8. Something's rotten in Denmark

**Disclaimer:** I certainly own nothing except for the plot and unknown characters.

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I want to thank **Silvan Arrow**, **HT**, **city with no people**, **Hinata'sbf**, **Brazilian Phoenix**, **AuroraNin**, **zeta.the.devil**, **SGCred**, **Amantes**, **SilverLegionare**, **noname**, **Ruki44** _and_ **Terenin**. I already said this, but I'm going to repeat it again; _you guys rock!_ And thank you so much for telling me about the pairing, I already made my decision, but I'm not going to reveal it yet. I just hope you guys accept it, despite of everything! Thanks everyone!

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**Chapter 8**

"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark."

(From _Hamlet _(I, iv, 90) )

Fireweed.

She definitely smelled like fireweed.

It was amazing how he had never noticed before, but he guessed she knew how to be scary enough to make him ignore her fragrance. But now that he had noticed it…well, he was becoming addicted.

He was becoming addicted not only to her scent, but also to the way she moved…to the way she held him as they kept on dancing at the slow melody. It had surprised him when she had not punched him when he had rested his hands on her hips…heck, it had surprised him when she had actually accepted to dance with him!

And she had been blushing too!

And that also caught him off guard.

After all, Chouji had never thought Ino would blush because of him! He had always expected to see her blushing because of Sasuke or some other guy who was too hot in her eyes, but heck, never him.

But she had, and against all his thoughts, Chouji had found it cute.

But of course he would never be able to tell Ino that. Not if he wanted to keep his head attached to his neck, and his hearing too.

Sighing to himself, Chouji glanced at the couples around him. It seemed that that night was the moment when all impossibilities came to life. Who would have thought that Sakura and Sasuke would be caught dancing? And Neji with Tenten? Even Lee had dragged Hana with him, but Chouji's eyes quickly fell on Naruto and Hinata.

Oh, he truly hoped Naruto would stop being so dense, and see who was standing right in front of him.

He had never thought about it, but after meeting Hinata, and actually talk to her, Chouji had to admit that the two of them had a lot in common. Both of them liked someone who was oblivious of their feelings (although it was impressive how dense Naruto could really be). And both of them were not certain about revealing their feelings.

And both of them were now treasuring that moment.

A moment they were not certain if it was ever going to happen again.

Sighing to himself, Chouji looked at Ino, who was exactly as tall as him. If she was smaller, then he would probably try to draw her more to him, but since she could look at him in the eye with absolutely no problem at all, Chouji guessed he should try to keep his distance.

"This is strange…" Ino commented in a surprising low tone of voice, and Chouji blinked in confusion. "You smell like pudding."

At that Chouji chuckled.

"Is that bad?" he questioned, and Ino looked up at him in confusion, indicating that she had not realised she had spoken out-loud. "You said I smell like pudding."

"Err…no, I hum…I actually love pudding." Ino replied, before chuckling. "I love small tomatoes too. Though, I have no idea why I decided to tell you that."

"Well, let's be embarrassed together then." Chouji started, and the girl arched an eyebrow. "From all the food I love to eat – which is pretty much everything – I love snacks, sweets, and Korean barbeque!"

"Which is quite clear, no?" Ino asked, now with both her eyebrows raised, and when Chouji chuckled, the girl started giggling. "You're too silly for your own good."

"Eh, we all have our flaws." Chouji replied, but the corner of his lips had already curled up into a small smile. "But hey, at least I made you laugh! You didn't seem as if you were enjoying the dance."

"Don't be stupid, I _am_ enjoying dancing with you." Ino corrected with a small shake of her head, "In fact, I must admit I'm surprise to see a chubby guy like you dancing so incredibly well. Well, not as good as Sasuke-kun, of course, but you're way better than that baka over there."

In confusion, Chouji looked to the point Ino was staring at, and sweatdropped when he saw Naruto stepping on Hinata's foot. And even though the girl was currently shaking her head while Naruto asked for forgiveness, it was obvious that that had hurt. And Chouji would be feeling sorry for Hinata too, if it had not been for Ino's comment.

Even though he had prepared himself mentally to hear those statements, it still hurt Chouji to hear Ino comparing him to Sasuke. Chouji was pretty much aware that he was nothing when compared with the Uchiha, but to hear the girl he liked saying so…

"Hey, Chouji, I know this isn't the right song, but…" Chouji focused his eyes on Ino when her voice echoed in his ears, "Do you know how to dance waltz?"

"Huh?"

Yeah, the most intelligent answer ever! With sarcasm intended too!

"Oh, you know, waltz!" Ino exclaimed, revealing that she definitely still had her bad temper. "Ballroom waltz!"

"Oh, hum, yeah, why?" Chouji asked in confusion, but when he saw the pink colour painting Ino's usual pale cheeks, he dropped his mouth in a big 'O'. "Y-You want to dance waltz? Here?"

"And why not?" Ino asked, as she stopped dancing in order to hit with her foot on the wooden floor, and Chouji sighed.

"Okay, but don't kill me." Chouji whispered as he pulled Ino closer to him so that their bodies were forming a 'V', and then he rested Ino's left arm on his right one. Still with a gentle touch, Chouji rested his left hand on the upper centre of Ino's back. "So, I start with my left foot, and you with your right one. But then again, I guess you know how to dance, ne?"

"Err…actually…"

"Well, even if you don't, just follow my lead." Chouji interrupted before starting to indicate Ino how to move her feet as they danced, but on the inside he was cheering.

Perhaps there was still a chance for him.

* * *

He was, for lack of words, a heck of a dancer.

She knew he was perfect in everything he did, but damn, to feel him moving her around as if she was a feather was just…hell, there were not even words to describe it! And the most unexpected was that she could not believe she was thinking that way!

Despite of the general opinion that she was too much of a tomboy to realise how lucky she was, Tenten had to admit that she had considered herself way lucky when she found out who was going to be in her team. Yep, even though she had been reluctant because of Lee, Tenten had gladly accepted to become a member of Team Gai as soon as she found out that Hyuuga Neji was her team mate.

At the beginning, Tenten had tried to get closer to him because he was strong and demanding. Two things she liked because they made her want to become stronger. But as time passed by, Tenten also noted that Neji did not mind to have her around, which did not happen with other girls.

And from that moment on, Tenten had started to appreciate all those little opportunities she had to be with Neji. It did not matter if it was to train, because of a mission or a reunion…Tenten grasped all those opportunities with everything she had.

And now, after so many years, she had not only managed to convince Neji to stand up from his chair, but she had also managed to make him dance!

The sky was probably falling outside, but Tenten was enjoying that moment too much to actually care.

"Say, do you have any other secrets I should be told of?" Tenten asked as she looked up at Neji, who had a blank expression on his face as they continued to dance. "I mean, c'mon, I never though you knew how to dance!"

"A member of the Hyuuga clan knows how to do everything." Neji pointed out, and Tenten blinked at his words. "It would be shameful for both families if one member did not know how to do something so stupid as dancing."

"Oh, you can do _anything_, eh?" Tenten inquired with a mischievous smile as they continued dancing slowly, but then she blinked; did she just…flirt with Neji? Okay, something was really wrong, but it was not as if Tenten had had the time to stop the next words from leaving her lips. "Say, don't you want to show me how cool you are, Neji? I mean, we're team mates, and all I've seen you do is kick some people's ass, but…well, you never showed me your other side…_this_ side…"

Okay, what on earth was going on?

"You never seemed the kind of girl who would be interested in something else rather than training." Neji pointed out, forcing Tenten to stop dancing, and then she raised one eyebrow.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she questioned, though her left arm was still resting on Neji's shoulder, while her right hand was still holding his. "I may like to practice, but that doesn't mean I don't have other needs."

"Than you should specify those needs." Neji stated in his composed tone, and Tenten twitched. And she twitched for two reasons; first, Neji was stating with absolutely no problem that she was a tomboy. And secondly, why did it feel as if they were flirting for heavens sake? They had never done that before!

Perhaps it was something they had ate? Though that thought seemed quite stupid, since the two of them had completely different tastes when it came to food.

"Can we just continue dancing?" Tenten asked as she increased her hold on Neji's hand, but the boy just continued to stare at her. And damn, for the first time, his intense glare was making her feel uncomfortable. "And stop looking at me like that."

"You look…" when Neji trailed off, Tenten blinked; had he just started to praise her? Okay, something was truly wrong in that picture! Neji never, _ever_, praised anyone about anything!

"I look what, Neji?"

She had just not asked that!

"Nothing…" Neji muttered as he motioned for her to start dancing, but Tenten did not budge.

"I look what, Neji?" the girl repeated again, but the boy just continued to stare at her. For the first time, though, Tenten felt annoyed by his expression. "Will you just answer me? I look what?"

"Gorgeous."

Okay, now why was her blood start rushing up to her cheeks? Man, things were getting weirder and weirder. But when she glanced away, unable to look at Neji in the eye, Tenten found Sakura and Sasuke staring at each other, Hinata and Naruto blushing as they danced, and…heck, what on earth was going on?

"Oh hum…thanks." Tenten muttered, still blushing slightly, and she allowed Neji to move her around, and silently they started dancing. However, despite the fact they had fallen in silence, Tenten could not help but feel as if something had changed between the two of them.

Something truly weird was going on.

* * *

"Do I even want to know what you have been plotting?" Mesi questioned as she stepped beside Jiraiya, who was currently eating a slide of cake. Instead of an answer, Jiraiya started laughing wickedly under his breath, and with a twitch Mesi smacked him on the top of his head. "Answer me."

"Eh, I have nothing to do with whatever you're talking about." Jiraiya stated innocently, and Mesi rolled her eyes before resting a hand on her hip. "But tell me, how come Kakashi hasn't made a move yet? Damn girl, you look hot."

"Just shut it, you maybe older, but the respect I have for you may slip from my mind for a second." Mesi stated, and Jiraiya blinked at her before sighing, and then he turned to her still holding the plate.

"You know, I still remember you when you were little; always standing in the shadows, with the biggest crush ever." Jiraiya started, and Mesi twitched again. "Hmm, it's good to see you finally decided to become a butterfly."

"Jiraiya, you have exactly five seconds to change the subject, or I _am_ going to hurt you."

"You can say whatever you want, but you know it's true." Jiraiya stated with a small shrug, and then he took another bite. "I know what forced you to change, but I bet that despite of your sudden mood-swing, there's something inside of you that hasn't changed."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Mesi asked, raising an eyebrow, and Jiraiya smirked at her before pointing to her heart with his fork.

"There has to be a reason that explains why you allow the king of perverts to be around you, when you refuse to let Kakashi approach you." Jiraiya pointed out, and Mesi snorted. "So, I'm willing to bet that despite your physical change, your emotional side is pretty much the same."

"You know nothing about me, Jiraiya, so don't you start analyzing me as if I'm some woman you want to flirt with." Mesi hissed, but the older man simply glanced behind her, and slowly Mesi looked over her shoulder as well.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything." Kakashi spoke as he stepped beside Mesi, who rolled her eyes while Jiraiya shook his head. "Jiraiya, I must ask you; did you do something to them? Because they're all behaving rather strangely."

"Injustice! I just showed up, and you're already blaming me for something I didn't do?" Jiraiya asked, putting his empty plate on the table. "I swear on my honour, I didn't do anything that could prejudice this ball."

"Right, but for some _unknown_ reason, I find that difficult to believe in." Mesi commented sarcastically, and Jiraiya shrugged while Kakashi turned to the table, and grabbed a plastic cup. "What did you do? I mean, look at them!"

In silence, both Jiraiya and Mesi turned to the dance floor. Sakura looked as if she was ready to make out with Sasuke, who was still looking bored about all the dancing. Hinata was blushing terribly since Naruto now had a hand resting on her cheek as he apologized for stepping on her feet again. Neji and Tenten were looking at opposite directions as they danced, but they were definitely moving closer. Ino and Chouji were already so close that it was difficult to say where one started and the other ended.

The only couple that seemed to be behaving normally was Lee and Hana, who were dancing and talking. What none of them seemed to have noticed though was Shikamaru's glare while Senko was sitting all by herself.

"They don't notice, but they're doing things they wouldn't normally do." Mesi stated as she turned to Jiraiya, who was watching the couples with a strange glint in his eyes. Then, the female Jounin smacked Jiraiya on the head again. "Stop plotting, you dam pervert, and tell me what you did."

"There's something different about this Passion Fruit juice." Kakashi commented suddenly, and Mesi glanced at him only to see that the male Jounin had already covered his face, and was now staring at an empty cup.

"_Stay away from the drinks the entire night though."  
_

For some reason, Jiraiya's words echoed through her mind, and Mesi immediately turned to the Sannin, who was staring at Kakashi with a curious expression. And for some reason, Mesi was dreading to find out what was going to happen.

"Well, I wish you good luck." Jiraiya spoke suddenly, and Mesi blinked as she saw him turn on his heels. "I'm going to talk a little with Senko."

"Hey, wait! What on earth did you put in that juice?" Mesi asked, Kakashi staring weirdly at the two of them, but Jiraiya simply waved a hand before walking towards the table where Senko was.

"Hum, wasn't I supposed to drink this?" Kakashi asked suddenly, and Mesi growled under her breath. Oh, she just wish she could send all perverts to hell!

"How on earth am I supposed to know?" Mesi asked back, rage visible in her words, and Kakashi blinked in confusion as he continued to hold the cup. "Men! You're all a bunch of stupid and perverted men!"

As she gritted her teeth, Mesi pressed her arms against her chest, and walked away. What annoyed her the most though, was that she could feel Kakashi's eyes on her even though she knew he was not going to follow her.

* * *

She was supposed to be over that.

She had struggled during her adolescence to abandon her blushing habit as well as her finger twiddling, but heck, everything was coming back now. Even her stuttering – her biggest challenge – was coming back, and she hated it.

She hated to feel so weak when in his arms.

But the worst was that something was stopping her from fainting, and for some reason Hinata could say that whatever that thing was, it was not her self-control. No, whatever it was, did not come from inside of her. Her sudden willpower came from some place else, but from where?

"Hinata, seriously, I'm really sorry for stepping on your feet again." Naruto spoke as he continued to caress the girl's cheek with his hand, a honest expression on his face. "Maybe we should just stop dancing, and g-"

"N-No, it's okay." Hinata interrupted, mentally wincing because of her stutter. "It's fine, really. We all have to learn, ne? A-And you can't expect to learn without doing some mistakes first, ne?"

"You're too forgiving for your own good." Naruto commented, but the corner of his lips curled into a small smile as he chuckled. "Or for your feet's sake, in this case."

"I told you I was going to teach you how to dance, Naruto-kun, and that's exactly what I'm doing." Hinata explained as they continued dancing. "I-I have no problem. I mean, of course it hurts sometimes, but it's fine. I-I don't mind."

"You know, I never understood why you behave like this when you're around me." Naruto commented suddenly, and Hinata looked down in embarrassment. "I mean, Sakura-chan would probably have beat me up by now, and Ino would probably already left me because of my clumsiness, but you're still here."

"I think we need to support each other." Hinata whispered, but she looked up when she noticed how her thought had left her lips. "I-I mean, I'm sure Sakura would still help you, and Ino…well, I don't know, she behaves…weirdly sometimes."

"Tell me about it, I mean, have you seen her dancing with Chouji over there?" Naruto asked, but before Hinata had time to look over her shoulder, Naruto swung to his side so that she could look without calling for unwanted attention.

When she spotted her two friends, Hinata could not help but smile sadly; Ino had her head now rested on Chouji's shoulder as they continued to waltz. And the boy's expression was priceless; he looked as if he had just given all the food of the world, but his eyes…even from where she stood, Hinata could see the contentment in his orbs.

At least Chouji was managing to do something about his feelings, while she was pretty much stuck in that field.

"Say, is it just me, or people are a bit…mushy?" Naruto asked suddenly, and Hinata looked confusedly at him only to see him staring at everyone who was dancing. In silence, the Hyuuga heiress did the same, and she mentally chuckled when she saw that Naruto was right. Even Sasuke and Neji seemed to be warming up.

But she still felt unable to do something about her situation.

"Never thought Sasuke-teme and Sakura-chan would be dancing for so long." Naruto commented suddenly, and Hinata looked at him only to see a flash of sadness in his deep eyes. "Sasuke-teme is really surprising me, but I hope he treats Sakura-chan well, or I'll have to kill him."

"Naruto-kun, you…you don't mind seeing them together?" Hinata asked before she could stop herself, but she looked down when Naruto focused his attention on her. "I-I mean, I know you like Sakura, and…"

"Well, I guess I finally grew up." Naruto spoke, and Hinata blinked at his words. "You know, I always knew that Sakura-chan liked Sasuke-teme, but I guess I was too much of a dim-witted to admit it, and… Well, I guess this masquerade was what I needed to open my eyes once and for all."

"But it must hurt." Hinata whispered as she finally looked up at him, but she felt her breath get stuck in her throat when she noticed how close they were. Since Naruto was still looking down, and since she still spoke too softly, the boy had dropped his head down even more to be able to catch her words, but the problem was that now they were too close…_dangerously_ close…

"Well yeah, but I guess it's time for me to let go of this, ne?" Naruto asked, without raising his head, but apparently too oblivious of how close they were even though they were still dancing. "Besides, I know I'm not the right type for any girl, so…"

Okay, for him to say that, he truly had to be dense!

"Don't say that, Naruto-kun, I'm certain that someone…well, that some girl likes you for who you are." Hinata confessed, and then she bite her lower lip; all she had to do now was say that she was that girl, but damn, it was hard.

"Well, when you find her, let me know, alright?" Naruto asked with a small laugh, and Hinata felt her cheeks warming up. He deserved to know! Even if he did not like her back, he deserved to know! "But anyway, I'm starting to feel a bit strange. I think there was something in that drink I had before inviting you to dance with me."

"What drink?" Hinata asked, and Naruto thought for a moment before shrugging.

"Passion Fruit."

Okay, she had drank the same fruit drink, and Hinata _had_ to admit that ever since she had done so, her body had started to warm up. Especially every time she was around Naruto.

But if she was not mistaken, practically everyone had drank that same drink.

Perhaps that was why everyone was acting strangely.

Well, whatever it was, Hinata had to admit that something was going on with all of them.

"Hey, Hinata." Naruto called-out, and the member of the Hyuuga clan snapped from her thoughts only to blush when she noticed that Naruto had lowered his head even more at the point that their noses were inches apart. "Can I say something?"

"H-Hai."

"I'm sorry for not recognizing you before, but you _do_ look different." Naruto declared, and once again Hinata felt blood rushing up to her cheeks. "I mean, you don't look different, you look…heck, you look stupendous! I err…I just feel like a real idiot for not recognizing you, and…"

"It's alright, Naruto-kun." Hinata interrupted, silencing the boy by resting a finger against his lips. How on earth she had done that without feeling light-headed or even fainting was beyond Hinata's understanding. "I-I just hope you liked it."

"You kidding? I love it!" Naruto exclaimed happily, and Hinata blushed ten shades of red. "And you look so cute right now that I just want to kiss you."

Wait. _What?_

"N-Naruto-kun…" Hinata whispered before gulping when she saw Naruto lowering his head even more at same time he grabbed her finger, and pulled it away.

Her heart was beating painfully against her rib cage.

Her breathe was stuck in her throat.

And all she was seeing was the blue colour of Naruto's orbs as he continued to move his head down.

Hinata was about to close her eyes, her mind screaming while her heart continued to beat at an extremely fast rate in anticipation, when someone cleared their throat.

In confusion, Hinata looked to her side, and gasped while Naruto growled, and also looked to his side. Standing next to them, with a murderous look on his face, his arms pressed against his chest was non-other than Hyuuga Neji.

"What are you doing with my cousin, Naruto?"

And Hinata could not help but dread the outcome of that collision.

**To Be Continued…**


	9. Chemicals React

**Disclaimer: **Masashi Kishimoto is the owner of _Naruto_. I just borrowed his characters, mixed them with my own OCs and the plot I prepared, and _tada! I_ created this fic.

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I am still in shock. I cannot believe I reached 100 reviews. I am being serious when I say I was not expecting this, but…wow, I'm so happy! »hugs all her readers« **Thank you so much for everything! **You guys…heavens, I don't even know what to say! _You guys rock!_ Without you, I certainly wouldn't have continued this fic, and hum… I know these words are small, but to me, they mean more than gold; _thank you!_

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**INFORMATION:** I finally decided the last pairing; I hope you guys accept it, but I must explain that there are more romantic _hints_ than romantic _acts_. It's just that I don't feel comfortable with some of the pairings, so… Anyway, I just hope you guys don't mind.

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**Chapter 9**

Chemicals React

For how long had they been dancing? Oh, she had already lost track of time. Not that time mattered to her, but she wanted to treasure that moment forever. The moment when Sasuke had willingly allowed her to be in his arms, and dance. Oh boy, and what a dance! For her, they had been made for each other…she felt as if she could melt into him!

He was warm, and there was this fragrance around him…a scent of pine and wet grass… She had never noticed it before, which was surprising since she knew everything about him! But at same time Sakura was happy for that, after all, now she could take his scent in and remember it forever.

As they continued dancing, Sakura silently gazed at their joined hands at same time she felt his left hand resting on her hip. Inside of her, Inner Sakura was already cheering, and shouting 'love prevails', but Sakura did her best to look serene.

For a moment Sakura wondered if she should speak; she was afraid that if she did, Sasuke would turn on his heels, and walk away. And she did not want that to happen; not when she was enjoying that moment so much…

But at same time Sakura felt the need to say something…anything that could help her to understand if Sasuke was enjoying that moment as much as her. His stoic face no longer held the meaning he wanted to give it, at least, not for her.

"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura whispered, her eyes meeting Sasuke's hard ones, but as soon as their eyes found each other, Sakura felt a shiver run down her spine. Now, what was that all about? She was not coming down with a cold, and she was feeling extremely well; there was no explanation for her heart to start beating so quickly as it was now.

"Sasuke-kun, I…thank you." Sakura whispered the last two words, her eyes still locked with the boy's, and then she licked her lips. "I hum…thanks for dancing with me."

"Humph."

"Really, I know this sounds silly coming from an eighteen year-old, but… I guess I just wanted to tell you that I'm really enjoying this." Sakura continued, still not sure if she was doing the right thing by speaking her thoughts, but Sasuke just continued to stare at her with his impassive expression. "Thank you for dancing with me."

"I did it because it was the only way for you to let me be." Sasuke growled, but Sakura continued looking at him. His words did hurt, but she was getting used to his rude behaviour, especially when he was trying to hide his true feelings. "And I think we have danced enough for you to stop bothering me."

"Sasuke-kun, please, just for one night…" Sakura spoke when she felt Sasuke drop the hand that had been resting on her hip, and she grasped the one she had been holding. "Just for tonight, please…"

"The agreement was one dance, and you'd let me be." Sasuke grunted, still in the same tone of voice, and Sakura looked away when she felt his fingers leave hers. "I danced more than I should have with you, and now it's time for you to do your part."

"Am I that repulsive to you?" Sakura whispered before she could stop herself, and Sasuke simply turned to his side before stopping his tracks. "Do you really hate me that much?"

"Humph, you're an idiot." Sasuke grunted, crossing his arms against his chest, but Sakura continued looking down. "A deal is a deal, and I did my part. Don't bother me about dancing again."

Wait.

He said that she could not bother him about _dancing_ again.

_Just_ dancing.

With a grunt, Sasuke turned around, and made his way towards the table where Senko and Jiraiya were. As she watched him walking away, Sakura pressed a hand against her chest, her eyes locked with Sasuke's back. Had that… Was that his way of saying that she could talk to him during the rest of the night as long as it was not to ask him to dance?

"Sasuke-kun, wait!" Sakura called out before walking after him, but when the boy did not even look over his shoulder, Sakura reached out for his hand, and grasped it again. "Wait, please… I-I didn't understand…"

Sakura trailed off when she squeezed Sasuke's hand, and consequently felt as if flames started to consume her limbs. Her blood seemed to have start pumping at full speed throughout her whole body while her cheeks started to warm up as soon as Sasuke sent her an deadpan look.

What on earth was going on with her?

"Can I sit with you?" Sakura heard herself ask, and for a moment she could swear that Inner Sakura was encouraging her. "I mean, you said I couldn't bother you about dancing again, so I thought…"

"Hey, billboard brown, what the heck do you think you're doing with Sasuke-kun?" a voice asked suddenly, and Sakura only had time to acknowledge the fact she was still holding Sasuke's hand before finding herself staring at Ino's crystalline blue eyes.

* * *

With a small laugh, Hana found herself twirling around as Lee raised their hands above their heads. Everyone else was dancing calmly, following the slow beat of the song, but they were dancing like insane people, twirling and moving from side-to-side as if they were dancing at the beat of a fast song.

Oh, who would have thought that Rock Lee knew how to improvise so well? Heck, Hana could swear he knew how to dance, but was just trying to behave as if he did not.

"Are you sure you're being honest when you say you can't dance?" Hana finally decided to voice her thoughts as Lee stopped twirling her, and rested a hand back on her hip. "I mean, you sure don't behave like it."

"Well, Gai-sensei taught us how to improvise." Lee said with a small wink, and Hana laughed at his behaviour. "He always says that nothing stops the flame of youth if we know how to improvise, and trust me, that's exactly what I'm doing."

"Well, allow me to say you're doing an impressive job." Hana said before allowing Lee to twirl her around so that her back was resting against his chest. "I've never danced like this in my entire life."

"One of the best traits of my family, trust me." Lee replied before twirling Hana again so that they were facing each other, both of them smiling at their insane dance.

"May I?"

In confusion, Hana looked to her side, and felt her heart skip a beat when she saw who it was. Oh dear, she truly hoped that the angry look she had seen on his face had been her imagination; Hana had never seen Shikamaru truly angry, so she really did not want to think about what could happen if he blew up.

But then again, why was he irritated on the first place? It really did not make much sense to her.

"Oh, of course not, I was thinking about inviting Senko to dance anyway." Lee spoke, and before Hana could even stop him, the boy winked at her before turning around, and walk away. However, before something could be said or done, Ino and Neji's voice were heard.

"Hey, billboard brow, what the heck do you think you're doing with Sasuke-kun?"

"What are you doing with my cousin, Naruto?"

Okay, those were two collisions Hana was not certain if she wanted to witness. Ino and Sakura were great friends even though they behaved like mortal enemies, but when the subject was Sasuke, Hana could not help but get worried. As for Neji and Naruto…for some reason Hana truly did not want to view the outcome of that fight.

"What do you want now, Ino-pig?" Sakura asked as she continued holding Sasuke's hand, her narrowed eyes locked with Ino's.

"What do I want now?" Ino asked, before laughing. "C'mon Sakura, you know very well what I want. Tsk, throwing yourself at Sasuke like that in front of everyone. You should be ashamed of yourself."

"Hum…Ino, you do the same thing all the time." Chouji commented as he appeared next to the blonde, who simply glared at him. "Fine, fine, shutting up."

"What the heck is your problem, Ino? I'm trying to enjoy the masquerade, something that you should be doing too!" Sakura snapped, finally releasing Sasuke's hand in order to clench both her hands into strong fists. "I seriously don't get it; you walk away from our discussion, but now you're asking me why I'm making a move?"

"Well, of course, I am your archenemy after all." Ino stated with a small smirk, and Sakura rolled her eyes. "But anyway, c'mon girl, that's not how you do it."

"Huh?"

"First of all, this is Sasuke-kun we're talking about, and you just let him go." Ino started, and Sakura looked to the spot where the Uchiha had once stood only to see that he was no longer there, but sitting on a chair beside Senko. "Secondly, you have to be more aggressive. Either that, or take your chances with Lee."

"Oh no, not that again." Sakura groaned, but she blinked in surprise when Ino suddenly stopped one arm-length away from her, the smirk still on her face. "Is there anything else you want to say?"

"Yep, what about making the right choice?" Ino asked suddenly, and Sakura arched an eyebrow when Ino glanced at some point behind the pink haired girl, and in confusion Sakura looked over her shoulder. Standing close to a table, watching the show with a strange expression on his face, was Lee. "So, who do you want? Sasuke-kun or Lee?"

"As if I don't know what you're trying to do." Sakura hissed in a dangerous tone, and this time it was Ino who raised an eyebrow. "You're expecting me to choose Lee-san because of that bet we did, so that you can have Sasuke all for yourself."

"Oh, c'mon Sakura, do you honestly think I would need to do this to have Sasuke?" Ino questioned before shaking her head. "No, Sakura, believe it or not, I just want you to be happy regardless if it's with Sasuke-kun or with someone else."

"Why are you doing this Ino, you're acting completely out of character." Sakura pointed out, as she crossed her arms against her chest, and the blonde shrugged. "You said it yourself; you're supposed to be my archenemy."

"I don't know what's going on either, but hey, everyone here is not behaving in character anyway." Ino stated, and Sakura sighed. "Anyway, I just interrupted your…romantic moment, because I just wanted to help you to see that there are more guys than Sasuke-kun surrounding you."

"What about worrying about yourself for a change? Because, in case you haven't noticed, you're letting Sasuke-kun slip away, which means you'll have to do your part of the bet." Sakura pointed out, but she blinked in surprise when Ino started laughing.

"Oh, trust me, billboard brow, I'm already taking care of my part of the deal." Ino started with a knowing smile, "I just wanted to make sure you know what you're doing, that's all. After all, if you make the worst mistake of your life, I certainly won't allow you to forget it."

"Err, thanks?" Sakura questioned, but Ino simply sent her a superior look before turning to Chouji, and motion him to return to the dance floor. Naruto and Neji, however, were still staring at each other, everyone else silently waiting to see what was going to happen.

"I'm going to ask this one last time; what are you doing with my cousin, Naruto?" Neji questioned, still in his superior tone, and slowly Naruto let go of Hinata's hand in order to turn to the male Hyuuga.

"I was dancing with her." Naruto pointed out, and Hinata raised a hand against her chest when Neji sent her a cold glare before focusing his attention back to Naruto, his arms pressed against his chest.

"I believe that's called an almost-kiss, and I'm sure the name speaks for itself." Neji started. "If I hadn't interrupted you, you would have kissed Hinata-sama, which goes against the laws of our clan."

"What? Does that mean that to be with her, I have to belong to the Hyuuga clan, is that it?" Naruto questioned, with a clenched fist, and Hinata looked at him with surprised eyes, but Neji revealed no emotion. "What the hell is your problem?"

"You tell me." Neji spoke after short silence, still in his superior posture, and everyone looked to Naruto, waiting to hear him say something.

"Well, I think you're all cuckoo in the head, if you ask me." Naruto started, slowly revealing his anger, and everyone glanced at Neji for a moment to see if he was going to react to the words. After all, Naruto had just stated that everyone in the Hyuuga clan was crazy. "You are the one who have to tell me why on earth I can't be with Hinata."

"Since when do you speak about the two of you as if you're a couple?" Neji questioned suddenly, and everyone stared at Naruto with their breathes stuck in their throats. That was the moment of truth…the moment when Naruto was going to prove that everyone had been wrong to think he was extremely dense…

"I'm not talking about the two of us as if we're together!"

Everyone sweatdropped; apparently there was no hope for Uzumaki Naruto.

"Then mind explaining me why you keep asking why I'm stopping you two from being together?" Neji questioned, still in a deadpanned tone, and everyone looked from the Hyuuga to Naruto again.

"Neji-nii-san, please, stop this." Hinata spoke suddenly, but Neji did not even glance at her; he simply continued to stare at Naruto, waiting for a reply.

"Because I'm tired of having you and everyone else saying that for someone to be with Hinata, that someone must be all rich and powerful and all that stuff!" Naruto exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. "You keep treating your cousin as if she's an object instead of treating her like the living being she is!"

"Hum, I wonder if this is Naruto talking or the effects of what Tsunade did…" Jiraiya muttered to himself, unaware that the blind girl sitting next to him had heard his whispered words, and smiled.

"So you want to challenge both Hyuuga houses to show how wrong our rules are, is that it?" Neji asked still in the same controlled tone of voice, and Naruto narrowed his eyes before raising a fist in the air.

"When I become the Hokage, I _will_ change everything!" the blond exclaimed, "That's a promise!"

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata whispered as she looked away from her cousin to stare at the boy standing next to her.

"You know something, Uzumaki Naruto, I certainly don't like you." Neji started calmly, and Naruto blinked. "I respect you, but I don't like you, but that's why I'm leaving here a warning; if you even think about breaking Hinata-sama's heart, you can be certain I'm going to break your neck."

"Neji!" Tenten called out when the male Hyuuga turned around, and started walking towards the door, but before leaving the classroom, Neji looked over his shoulder.

"I believe it's time for us to leave." he commented, his eyes locked with Mesi, who simply shrugged.

"Wait, Neji!" Tenten called again before rushing after the boy right when he left the room, and everyone stared at each others for a moment before focusing their attentions on the two Jounin and on Jiraiya.

"Well, if you want to leave, we certainly won't stop you now." Mesi commented as she leaned against the wall, "We have one hour before the sunrise, so feel free to do whatever you want."

"Man, now that I was actually having fun…" Naruto muttered under his breath before glancing at the girl that was standing beside him, and he quickly added. "Not that I was enjoying stepping on your feet, Hinata, but…well, I guess I was having fun dancing with you."

"That's alright, Naruto-kun." Hinata replied, feeling relieved for not stuttering, but she smiled slightly when the boy turned to her. "I wanted to thank you, though."

"Huh? For what?"

"Well, you faced Neji, and….your words…no one ever dared to say anything against my family." Hinata finished in a whisper, and Naruto blinked. "Since my family is placed on the highest level possible, not many people dare to express what you did."

"Well, when I become the Hokage, I'll be above your family, and I'll decreed that all of you deserve to make your own choices." Naruto stated with a nod, and Hinata smiled softly at him. "I hum…I just hope you're not mad for what I tried to do, Hinata."

"Oh, hum…" blush started to cover Hinata's cheeks as she looked down, Naruto now towering her as he continued to watch her. "It's alright, Naruto-kun, y-you really need to stop apologizing when you're around me."

"I guess we have to stop apologizing to each other for every little thing we do." Naruto whispered, and Hinata looked up. Once again, her breathe got stuck in her throat since their faces were too close for the second time on that night, but this time, they were interrupted by Ino and Chouji.

"Guys, what do you say about us going as well?" Ino asked, and Hinata mentally sighed when Naruto gave one step backwards. "I think Sakura wants to stay around for a little while with Sasuke, and apparently Shikamaru is staying behind as well, so… Want to come?"

"Hum…sure, I have to accompany Hinata anyway." Naruto said with a short nod, and Hinata looked up at him with her eyes widened slightly in surprise. He was taking her home?

"Great! Let's go then!" Ino exclaimed, and the four of them said their goodbyes before walking out of the room.

With a tired sigh, Lee glanced at Senko, who was sitting next to Jiraiya, the two of them talking about something. For a moment he wondered if he should go to her; Lee wanted to see if Sakura – who was watching Sasuke from a corner – was alright, but at same time, he really did feel tired.

He was tired of running after the one he knew that would never love him. It hurt him to think that Sakura only looked at him as a sister looks up at her older brother, but at same time… Well, deep down Lee had always known that that was what was meant to be; he standing alone in the shadows, watching Sakura gathering up all her courage to go talk to Sasuke.

And now that he was thinking about it, Lee had to admit he was pretty pathetic; to go after a girl who he knew that was never going to like him the same way he liked her.

With quiet steps, Lee approached the table where the Sannin and Senko were, and cleared his throat in order to have their attention. Even though he had just met her, Lee had to admit he wanted to find more about Senko; about who she was, and the reason that had taken her to Konoha.

"Hum…sorry for interrupting, but I need to talk to Senko." Lee spoke suddenly, and while Jiraiya simply glanced at him with no interest at all, Senko turned her head to him. "I hum…Senko, do you mind if I company you home?"

"Oh, there's no need for that, I have to go to the hospital." Senko answered sounding too jovial for someone who had spent the whole night sitting on a chair. Lee, despite the fact Senko could not see it, shook his head before resting a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"I really don't mind, besides, I think it's a way of us getting to know each other." Lee continued, and Senko sighed. "And trust me, if Tsunade-sama indeed told you things about me, then she also told you that when I want to do something, I do it."

"I guess there's no point in trying to refuse again, ne?" Senko asked, and Lee nodded as he grinned. "Thank you, Lee-san."

"Well, what about thanking me when we arrive to the hospital?" Lee asked as Senko stood up from the chair before turning to him. "And say, if you want, we can go for a walk tomorrow. I'm sure Tsunade-sama would be happy if you enjoy Konoha before the surgical operation."

"I would like that, yes." Senko finally answered, and Lee grinned at her before bowing at Jiraiya, while the girl turned to the Sennin. "And Jiraiya-sama, I promise I won't say anything to anyone about the drinks."

"What?" Jiraiya asked, staring at the blind girl in surprise while Lee stared at the two of them in confusion. "How did you find out?"

"Just a feeling." Senko replied before bowing slightly, hands clasped in front of her legs. "Shall we go, Lee-san?"

"Yosh!"

"Wait! Lee!" a voice called out, and the two young adults looked to their side only to see Sakura walking as fast as she could with her heels towards them. "Lee, I…well, I have to tell you something."

"Did something happen, Sakura-san?" Lee asked, and Sakura glanced at Senko before shaking her head.

"No, it was just a bet Ino and I did, and hum…" Sakura licked her lips in nervousness, "Well, even though Ino-pig isn't here anymore, I just wanted to say that…well, despite of everything, you're a great friend, and I really, _really_, value our friendship, and hum…well, you're like an older brother to me, and…"

"I know, Sakura-san, I know." Lee interrupted with a soft smile, and Sakura blinked at his words. "I just hope you find happiness, because you do deserve to be happy, even if that means having to see you and Sasuke together."

"Lee, I…"

"It's alright, Sakura-san, don't finish that thought." Lee interrupted, raising his hand slightly, and the medical-nin closed her mouth. "Besides, there's no need for you to apologize; we can't force ourselves to like someone, ne? Like I said, I just want you to be happy."

"I…hum…Lee…thank you." Sakura finally whispered, and Lee raised his thumb in his 'nice guy' pose, a white smile on his face, and then he turned to Senko before leading her out of the room.

When she was alone, Sakura turned to her side, and her eyes fell on Sasuke, who was leaning against a wall. After a moment debating with herself, Sakura finally decided to go to him, her hands clasped behind her.

"Hum…Sasuke-kun, I just wanted to thank you for the company, even though I wasn't your date." Sakura spoke as she stopped one arm-length away from the Uchiha member. "Sorry if I was a pain, though, and I guess I'll see you in the morning."

When Sasuke said nothing, his eyes closed while his arms were pressed against his chest, Sakura looked down before turning around. However, when she gave the first step, Sakura saw Sasuke step beside her, his eyes locked with the door of the classroom. For a moment the medical-nin just stared at him, befuddled, but when Sasuke glanced at her for a moment, Sakura found herself smiling.

They were different, but perhaps with time their personalities would finally react to each other. At least, Sakura would do her best to show Sasuke that her feelings were real, and that she was always going to be there for him.

Always…

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun." Sakura whispered, and she slowly touched the boy's hand. When he did not move away, Sakura bite her lower lip, and entwined her fingers with his, and silently the two of them walked away.

Yes, one day their chemicals would react, and Haruno Sakura would do her best to offer nothing but happiness to Uchiha Sasuke.

**To Be Continued…**


	10. I Am Me

**Disclaimer:** Everything here belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I only own my own characters and the plot of this fic. Nothing else is mine.

* * *

People, I need to inform you about something, and I hope you guys can forgive me for not warning you in advance; this is the _**last**_ chapter. Yep, you read it right; after this chapter, _I Am Not Me_ is finished. I cannot find the words to thank you guys; you have supported me, helped me, advised me….heavens, I seriously have no words. "Thank you" seems so…insignificant when I think about everything you guys did for me. And yet, ironic enough, "thank you" is the only thing I can think of to show my gratitude.

I hope you guys enjoy this final chapter, and »bows« thank you very much, for everything!

* * *

**Chapter 10**

I Am Me

The sky was slowly being painted by vivid colours, stars still being visible while the moon slowly faded behind the tall trees that surrounded the village. People had yet to leave the comfort of their houses in order to start the new day, but he was thankful for it. Too many were the moments when he would have to face the hating look of an elder or the confused expression of a child. But truth was that this time he could not care less. It seemed as if the masquerade had done more than just help him to relax, but he could not say in what it had helped him exactly.

Maybe it had aided him to talk to Hinata…not only talk, but dance as well, not to mention the 'almost-kiss' like Neji had named it.

Yep, after thinking about all that, Uzumaki Naruto had to admit something strange had occurred during the masquerade. He just did know what exactly.

"So, this is it." Naruto commented as he stopped in front of the gates of the Hyuuga mansion, and slowly he turned to Hinata. "You know, I never thanked you for teaching me how to dance."

"You're welcome, Naruto-kun." Hinata replied in her soft tone, a faint blush covering her cheeks. "Thank you for spending the night with me."

"Well, I'm glad I did because you helped me to see certain things and to understand others." Naruto expressed with a grin, and Hinata blinked at his words. "Well, you know, thanks to you I finally understood that Sakura-chan truly likes Sasuke-teme, and that I needed to face that _and_ accept it as it is."

"But Naruto-kun, you can show your sadness." Hinata started after a moment in silence, and then she looked down. "I mean, Sakura likes Sasuke…it's okay for you to feel bad about it."

"But that's the thing; I _don't_ feel bad about it." Naruto started before shrugging. "I guess I always knew it, but I was too dense to admit it. And I think that one of the reasons why I don't feel bad about it, it's because you were there for me."

"Eh?"

"I don't know how to explain it." Naruto commented as he rubbed the back of his head. "I just felt that since I was with you I didn't have to feel bad about everything that was happening, and that with you I could really smile and be myself."

"You can always be you, Naruto-kun, because that's what makes you special." Hinata said softly, but Naruto had to bent his head down in order to hear her whispered words. "I-I mean, I think that that was the purpose of this masquerade; for us to behave like someone else, and notice that what truly matters is who we are on the inside."

"Well, if that's true, allow me to do this…" Naruto trailed off as he raised his hands, and gently he grabbed both sides of Hinata's mask, and pulled it off. Still smiling, Naruto lowered his hands, still holding the mask with his left hand, and he stared at Hinata's eyes. "I think I like this Hinata better."

"Hinata-sama, if you want to do…_something_ with Uzumaki, at least have the decency of not doing it in front of our house." a stoic voice stated, and both young adults stared to their sides only to face Neji.

Naruto never understood what he had done for Neji to dislike him. Their relationship was pretty simple; Naruto did not bother him, and Neji would not bother him. It was as simple as that, but it seemed as if every time Naruto was alone with Hinata, Neji would find a way to show up from out of nowhere, and ruin the mood.

However, when Naruto opened his mouth ready to retort, he blinked. Wait, what was _that_?

"Hum…Neji, since when do you wear lipstick?" Naruto asked, and both Neji and Hinata sweatdropped before returning to their usual postures. "Heck, it's pink lipstick!" Naruto added when he approached Neji, and stared at the colour on the boy's lips. "Never took you as someone who likes that stuff!"

"Stop speaking nonsense, Uzumaki!" Neji said in a strong voice, but he made no motion to clean the lipstick from his face. Hinata, on the contrary, raised a hand to her lips to stop herself from giggling. "And leave!"

With those words, Neji walked through the gates of the mansion, and quickly disappeared, leaving a confused Naruto behind. As he scratched the back of his head in puzzlement, Naruto turned around, and raised an eyebrow when he saw Hinata doing her best not to giggle even though a smile was already on her face.

"You know, I never knew Neji liked that kind of stuff." Naruto commented, but this time he grinned sheepishly when Hinata started to giggle. It was nice to hear her laugh, but more importantly, it felt good to see Hinata behaving so naturally around him; up until then Naruto had yet to figure out why Hinata used to faint when with him.

"Naruto-kun, I have the feeling Neji-nii-san was not wearing that lipstick on purpose." Hinata said when she calmed down, and Naruto blinked at her words. "Well, I'm sure you noticed Tenten went after Neji-nii-san when he left the masquerade…"

"Well, yeah, I did, but w…._Oh!_" Naruto exclaimed loudly before smacking himself on the head, "I'm really dense sometimes."

"Oh, you're not dense, Naruto-kun, you just don't pay attention to those things." Hinata giggled, and Naruto sighed as he dropped his head in shame. And once again he had missed an opportunity to behave like an intelligent being. "But I think Neji-nii-san and Tenten aren't the only ones to have some…fun after the masquerade."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Naruto asked in confusion, and Hinata turned to her side before looking at the path behind them.

In confusion, Naruto followed her eyes, and sweatdropped; he had forgotten that Ino and Chouji were supposed to be with them, on their way back home. Go figure why he had not noticed that they were not with them anymore.

"I don't know why, but I think that's disturbing." Naruto muttered under his breath as he watched Ino and Chouji under a tree, kissing like there was no tomorrow. "And now I'm positive there was something weird with that passion fruit juice. I mean, everyone who drank it was acting weird, and now that I just found out that Neji and Tenten snogged, I have to watch _this_?"

When he heard Hinata giggle again, Naruto focused his attention on her, and mentally sighed. He did not know if it was because of something that he had drank or ate, but now that he was out of the masquerade, Naruto had to admit that being with Hinata had been his best choice. Sure she was quiet, and still blushed and stuttered, but that was exactly what made him feel so good around her.

So good that once again all Naruto could think of was about kissing the Hyuuga heiress.

"Hey, Hinata…" Naruto called-out, and the girl tore her eyes away from Ino and Chouji to turn to him. "I really hope you don't mind me doing this, but I just can't control myself anymore."

"What is it, Na-"

Without giving Hinata anymore time to finish her sentence, Naruto cupped her right cheek, and gently pressed his lips against the girl's. For a moment they just stood like that, lips caressing, but their bodies refusing to go any further. However, everything changed when Naruto dropped the mask he was still holding, and rested his hand on the back of Hinata's head, pulling the girl closer to him.

When he felt that Hinata was not responding, Naruto broke the kiss, and stared at her face. Hinata's eyes were widened in surprise, her face completely red while her arms were resting lifeless on her sides. Perhaps he should not have done that, besides, this was Hyuuga Hinata for heavens sake! Of course she would never feel anything for him.

"I'm sorry Hinata, I don't know what came over me!" Naruto started nervously, trying to make the girl snap from her trance. "I just couldn't help myself. You're a really cool girl, and you're different from everyone else, and you accepted me for me, and…"

"Naruto-kun…"

"I just wanted to show you that you mean a lot to me." Naruto rambled, not hearing his whispered name. "I mean, I know that until now I ignored you, but that was because of Sakura-chan. But now that I understood everything, I just wanted to show how much you mean to me."

"Naruto-kun…"

"Feel free to hit me with your Gentle Fist if you want, I swear I don't mind." Naruto continued, "Just don't ha-"

This time, Naruto was the one caught by surprise since Hinata had suddenly grabbed the collar of his shirt, and pulled him down, smashing her lips against his. This time he felt it…the strange electric wave running from the top of head to his toes, and Naruto had to admit it felt good.

Almost instantly, Naruto wrapped his arms around Hinata's small waist, pulling her even closer to him while Hinata continued holding his collar. Naruto was loving how gently Hinata dropped her grip on his shirt and started running her fingers though his hair, but when he felt the need to breathe, Naruto pressed his lips against Hinata's one last time before breaking the kiss.

As he struggled to catch his breath again, Naruto stared down at Hinata, who had her eyes closed while a deep shade of pink covered her pale complexion. Her long hair was caressing the sides of her face, giving her an innocent look, but before Naruto could speak, Hinata's eyelids fluttered open.

"Naruto-kun…"

"Yeah?" Naruto asked breathlessly, and Hinata caressed his cheek before resting her head on his chest.

"I think I'm going to faint."

"What?" Naruto asked, but before he knew it, he felt Hinata go limp on his arms, but he caught her before the girl could fall on the ground. Then, as he grabbed Hinata in bridal-style, Naruto groaned. "Hinata…"

* * *

With a tired sigh, Shikamaru glanced sideways at Lee and Senko, who were talking rather cheerfully while Lee kept guiding Senko. The two of them seemed to be having a nice time while all he could do was stare at the sky, and find everything troublesome since there were no clouds for him to observe.

As he clasped his hands behind his neck, Shikamaru glanced at Hana, who had already taken her mask off. She was looking ahead, her arms crossed against her chest; an habit – Shikamaru had noticed – that would always surface every time the girl was uncomfortable or nervous.

For a split of a second, Shikamaru wondered if he should say something. In previous situations, the two of them had no problem in telling each other what was bothering them, but this time it was different. Shikamaru could not explain why it was different, but it was.

Hana's behaviour was the proof.

And that was why Shikamaru was finding it so troublesome to start a conversation. He had never been good with women, especially those who were close to him, and he definitely did not know what to do when they were behaving like Hana was.

Man, that was a drag.

"This sucks." Shikamaru finally voiced, and as expected both Lee and Senko ignored him while Hana turned her head to him. When he noticed he had the required attention, Shikamaru continued. "Everyone was behaving out of character tonight."

"I think I have to agree with you." Hana started with a short nod, and she looked ahead again. "But I think everyone had fun, and that's the most important."

"I guess…" Shikamaru said with a small shrug, his hands still resting on the back of his neck, his eyes locked with the sky. "I noticed you had fun with Lee; the two of you didn't stop dancing even to breathe."

"Yes, I was lucky for having Lee as my accompanying person." Hana agreed with another short nod, and Shikamaru hum'ed at that. "He's very good at improvising, so… Well, I wouldn't mind dancing with him all over again."

"I'm sure you wouldn't…"

"You didn't seem to enjoy the party, though." Hana proceeded, and Shikamaru finally tore his eyes away from the sky to stare at the young woman in confusion. "I mean, I know it was probably tough to watch everyone get together when the person you like is not there, with you, but…I don't know, every time I looked at you, you seemed sad."

"Tsk, talking about that troublesome woman, again?" Shikamaru questioned, but Hana shook her head, her arms still pressed against her chest.

"I'm just stating what I saw." the medical-nin quickly explained, as she continued to look at Shikamaru. "I'm sorry, but you did seem sad sometimes, while in others…well, you said it yourself, everyone was behaving a little bit out of character."

"Those two seem to be getting along." Shikamaru muttered as he eyed Lee and Senko, and Hana glanced at the two of them too before smiling slightly.

"You know, Shikamaru-san, I think you should try to have some fun once in a while." Hana spoke suddenly, and the boy stared confusedly at her. "I'm sure it wouldn't hurt if you tried to dance or something."

"Guys, sorry for interrupting you, but I'm taking Senko to the hospital." Lee said suddenly, and the two young adults turned to their sides. "Thanks for being my accompanying person, Hana, I had lots of fun."

"Me too, Lee-san, me too." Hana replied with a smile, and Shikamaru stared at the sky as he grunted a goodbye, and with a small wave Lee started to lead Senko towards another road, leaving the medical-nin and Jounin alone.

"You really think I should have fun?" Shikamaru inquired when the two of them started walking, his eyes still staring at the coloured sky, and once again Hana focused her attention on him. "That's just troublesome, I don't have time to have fun."

"Nonetheless, you still went to the masquerade." Hana pointed out, and Shikamaru sighed tiredly. "Maybe next time Tsunade-sama will let you invite the kunoichi from Sunagakure."

"Will you just stop talking about that troublesome woman?" Shikamaru asked in a exhausted tone, and he glanced at Hana by the corner of his eyes. "Honestly, I thought the intend of staying up all night was because we had to have fun, and not to think about a troublesome woman like Temari."

"I'm sorry, I just…"

"And most importantly, _never_ apology." Shikamaru finished, and Hana closed her mouth at his words. "And Chouji really needs to stop telling you nonsense, because it's a drag."

"Alright…"

And there it was; a huge difference between Temari and Hana; the first one never let him have the last word, while Hana seemed to hate to fight. Especially over useless stuff, but Shikamaru still remembered a couple of times when the two of them got into fights, and boy, it was not pretty. After all, Hana could be a tranquil girl, but when she got mad…

Shikamaru guessed he still needed to learn more about her and Temari to see in what else they differed.

"Say, do you want to play Shogi?" Shikamaru asked, and Hana blinked at his words as she stared confusedly at him. "I mean, after we go back home, get rid of his annoying clothes, and rest from this weird night…"

"I hum…" Hana trailed off for a moment, but then she surprised Shikamaru with her sweet smile. "I would love that."

While Shikamaru and Hana kept walking down the road, Kakashi was taking Mesi back to her apartment, not understanding why his eye kept sliding down to the woman's behind. Of course he had stared at her the whole night, but this time it was different, Kakashi kept looking at her curves even without wanting to. And damn, the two slits on both sides of the skirt that went up to her thighs were still killing him!

"I'm sure Tsunade had something to do with what happened at the masquerade." Mesi growled under her breath as she finally unlocked the door. "You guys were behaving as if you had never seen a woman in your entire life! Damn perverts."

"I must agree with you, Tsunade-sama _did_ do something." Kakashi spoke as he forced himself to look up on the same moment Mesi turned to her side, "She kind of told me to go grab a medicine she was preparing, but I forgot. I guess that's why Jiraiya showed up."

"What kind of medicine?" Mesi questioned, raising an eyebrow in suspicion, and Kakashi scratched the back of his head. "Hatake Kakashi, speak now, before I force you!"

"I don't know what it was exactly; all I know is that it was supposed to make people reveal what they didn't want to." Kakashi blurred out, and Mesi turned to him, her arms pressed against her chest. "I hum…I don't know, but it had to do with hormones."

"And you just _happened_ to forget that information when you decided to drink the juice?" Mesi inquired, and Kakashi laughed nervously. However, he went silent when Mesi stepped closer to him, and smacked him upside down on the head. "I repeat it again; you're all a bunch of perverts."

"Mesi…" Kakashi called-out when the woman turned around, ready to walk through the door of her apartment, and he reached out for her elbow. "Did you notice you didn't dance with me this night?"

"Thank heavens I didn't, knowing Tsunade as I do, you probably won't be able to control yourself now." Mesi grunted as she turned her head to the male Jounin, and Kakashi narrowed his eye at her words.

"And who said I was controlling myself?" he asked, and this time Mesi did blink at his words. "Like I said, you owe me a dance."

"Nu-uh, Hatake, you know very well how I view _that_ type of dancing." Mesi started, but she still turned to him, and raised her left hand. "If you want to experiment that dance, you have to put a ring on this finger here."

"But there are other dances that don't involve a ring on that finger." Kakashi hissed in a husky tone, but Mesi actually laughed at his words. As for Kakashi himself, he had to admit he had no idea about what was going on, all he knew was that he could not control himself.

He was tired of controlling himself.

"Hatake, you better not be hitting on me." Mesi commented, and Kakashi mentally groaned when she moved closer to him; she kept saying he couldn't do anything to her, but she sure was doing something to him!

"Mesi, did you forget what I did during the masquerade?" Kakashi asked as he tried to ignore how close the woman was to him, but she simply stared up at him with an innocent smile. "Did you notice how everyone was getting out of character because of what Tsunade-sama prepared?"

"Well, I was just thinking you were right; I _did_ tease you a lot tonight." Mesi started, and Kakashi gulped when she rested a hand on his chest, right over his heart. "And since the masquerade is over, we really need to get rid of all masks."

"What masks?" Kakashi managed to ask as he felt Mesi move even closer to him so that her chest was touching his, but it was then that he noticed it. Oh, that mischievous look on her eyes was destroying him! And the damn medicine was not helping either.

"C'mon Hatake, stop being so silly, how do you expect us to dance if you don't take that mask off?" Mesi questioned as she raised her right hand, and caressed the man's mask with her fingers. "And I think that if you do want to dance, then you should make a move soon, because I'm just about to change my mind."

"Heck, I was thinking you were going to decline my invitation." Kakashi said as he rested a hand on the woman's hip, and Mesi rolled her eyes before starting to pull his mask down his nose very slowly.

"But be certain Hatake, that if you even dare to go further than dancing, I'll hurt you where it hurts the most." Mesi stated, but when Kakashi's mask was about to reach his lips, she added, "And I'll certainly make you forget any plans of yours of having children."

"Yes, ma'am." Kakashi replied, his mind too cloudy for him to say anything else, and suddenly Mesi dropped her hand that was pulling the mask down, and grabbed his collar. Then, with a small laugh, she pulled the male Jounin inside her house, Kakashi slamming the door behind him.

It was time for Tsunade to take care of the problems that would certainly spring as results from that masquerade.

**FIM**

"Hey, what the heck is going on in here?" Inuzuka Kiba asked as he reached the third training ground with Shino next to him, his eyes widened in surprise. Shino, on the contrary, looked as stoic as ever.

Ino and Chouji were sitting on the ground, Ino scolding the boy while he kept eating a bunch of potato chips. Ino, however, was sitting between the boy's legs, her back pressed against Chouji's chest.

Tenten was sitting with her back against a tree's truck, while Neji was lying on the ground, using the girl's legs as a pillow. Beside them, Hinata and Naruto were in the same position, although talking about something, though Hinata was blushing faintly.

Shikamaru and Hana were sitting on a tree's truck that was on the ground, a shogi board between them. Lee was sitting on a branch, talking to a girl who had a black cloth around her eyes, that was sitting next to him.

As for Sakura, she was sitting quietly on a small stone bench, reading a book, while Sasuke was standing next to her, his arms pressed against his chest as he continued leaning against a tree.

"Why do I have the feeling we missed something?" Kiba questioned as he glanced at Shino, who simply looked back at him.

On the meantime, Tsunade was sitting on her chair, behind the desk, her eyebrow twitching as she hold a piece of paper. The grip on the paper suddenly became stronger, and Tsunade ripped the document in two.

"Shizune!" the Hokage shouted suddenly, her eyebrow still twitching, and moments later her assistant stepped into the office, a worried look on her face. "Shizune, this village is going through a very difficult time."

"What? What happened? Did you receive news from Akatsuki?" Shizune questioned, but she closed her mouth when Tsunade looked at her way with narrowed eyes. "Hum…Did Jiraiya-sama do something while I was preparing the reports?"

"Forget about that pervert, we have worst problems to deal with." Tsunade growled as she stood up, and Shizune stared at her in worry. "We need to do something to save this village."

"Tsunade-sama, what's going on?" Shizune asked, sounding truly concerned, and the Hokage took a deep breath before turning around, and walk towards the window behind her chair. "Tsunade-sama?"

"Shizune, this village's safety depends on us." Tsunade started seriously, and Shizune gulped when the Hokage turned to her, a deadly serious expression on her face. Then, Tsunade pointed at her. "You go see Nara Shikaku and tell him to give us his book about medicine preparations and effects."

"W-What?" Shizune asked, caught completely off-guard, but Tsunade did not even flinch.

"We're having a problem dealing with hormones!" the Hokage exclaimed, and Shizune blinked. "There are too many hormones, and our best Chuunin and Jounin spend the whole day doing nothing expect for kissing and laughing! It's time for us to save this village! Now go!"

"Hai!"

**THE END!!**

Once again, _I thank you all for everything_. I hope you enjoyed this last chapter. »bows« I just hope that one day I will write something you guys truly deserve.

**Obrigada Por Tudo!**

13/05/07


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